NATO is planning to launch a new trans-Atlantic project to accelerate the development of key technologies, with a single Euro-centric headquarters in London and more than 60 partner facilities spread around the alliance.
Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg revealed plans to build the Defence Innovation Accelerator of the North Atlantic, or DIANA, modeled on the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, at the 31st annual NATO Summit in Brussels last summer.
Nearly a year later, NATO’s foreign ministers are poised to accept DIANA’s official charter and commit to a €1 billion (US$1.1 billion) innovation fund. During their April 6-7 meeting in Brussels, the ministers will endorse DIANA’s charter, Stoltenberg announced April 5 during a pre-ministerial news briefing.
More than 60 innovation locations are part of the project. There are two headquarters, one in Europe and the other in North America, roughly ten “accelerator sites” where participating entrepreneurs may get funding, mentorship, and exposure to commercial prospects, and more than 50 dedicated test facilities with labs and equipment.
Source: NATO unveils tech accelerator footprint, with plans for over 60 sites
