{"id":16811,"date":"2026-05-11T15:46:29","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T12:46:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/startups-can-get-support-to-enter-the-defence-and-security-sector-through-the-bescaled-pre-accelerator\/"},"modified":"2026-05-11T15:59:07","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T12:59:07","slug":"startups-can-get-support-to-enter-the-defence-and-security-sector-through-the-bescaled-pre-accelerator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/startups-can-get-support-to-enter-the-defence-and-security-sector-through-the-bescaled-pre-accelerator\/","title":{"rendered":"Startups can get support to enter the defence and security sector through the BeScaled pre-accelerator"},"content":{"rendered":"

Estonian and Finnish science- and technology-based startups can apply to the BeScaled pre-accelerator, which offers free business development support to validate dual-use solutions and enter European and NATO defence, security, and resilience markets. Applications are open until 13 September. <\/b><\/p>\n

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The program is aimed at teams with existing technology in the civil markets and an interest in moving into defence, security, and resilience sectors. During the six-month program, startups are supported in assessing the dual-use potential of their solutions, adapting their products and business models, identifying the right end users, and preparing for market entry. Participants receive mentor support, training, and access to an international network and to testing environments in Estonia and Finland. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201eIn Estonia, the challenge is not so much technological \u2014 startups are capable of building strong solutions. The biggest barriers are administrative,\u201c said Noora Ustav, BeScaled Project Manager at Sparkup Tartu Science Park. According to her, these barriers include complex regulations, procurement rules for working with public-sector entities, required certifications, and lengthy validation cycles with end users. \u201eThe program aims to shorten these processes and help companies better understand how to position their product in this sector.\u201c <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Estonia is currently among the leading countries in Europe in terms of defence investment as a share of GDP, which is driving the growing importance of dual-use technologies. \u201cWhat companies are primarily lacking today is knowledge,\u201d said Sven Lilla, Space Sector Lead at Sparkup Tartu Science Park. \u201cThe goal of the BeScaled pre-accelerator is to raise awareness and thereby encourage companies to seek funding from the defence sector.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201eDual-use is not a sector choice \u2014 it is a growth strategy. A startup does not need to become a defence company. Still, it does need clarity about whether its technology actually addresses a defence, security, or resilience need and who the end users would be,\u201c Ustav added. According to her, for many startups, the biggest risk is not missing the opportunity, but spending 12\u201318 months chasing the wrong one. \u201eThat is precisely why the program follows a three-step logic \u2014 explore, validate, decide. Six months is enough for a startup to make an informed go\/no-go decision.\u201c <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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BeScaled is a pre-accelerator funded by the European Union; its first cohort started in April 2026. The second application round is now open \u2014 the deadline is 13 September 2026. The program will run four cohorts in total, with the last in 2027. . In Estonia, the program is led by Sparkup Tartu Science Park and Tallinn University; Finnish partners include H\u00e4me University of Applied Sciences (HAMK), South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences (XAMK), and Linnan Kehitys.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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More information and applications are available on the Sparkup Tartu Science Park BeScaled page<\/a><\/span>. A background interview with Project Manager Noora Ustav was published in the Sparkup Tartu Science Park blog<\/span><\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Additional information:
\nSven Lilla
\nSpace Sector Lead at Sparkup Tartu Science Park
\n<\/span>sven.lilla@teaduspark.ee<\/a>
\n+372 5345 4149<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Estonian and Finnish science- and technology-based startups can apply to the BeScaled pre-accelerator, which offers free business development support to validate dual-use solutions and enter European and NATO defence, security, and resilience markets. Applications are open until 13 September. The program is aimed at teams with existing technology in the civil markets and an interest […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":15146,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[193],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16811","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16811","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16811"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16811\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16812,"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16811\/revisions\/16812"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15146"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16811"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16811"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teaduspark.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16811"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}