Dual-use technologies are increasingly crucial for the economy and national security. The launch of the MilTech Acceleration Program in Akces NCBR on 29 April showed more than just the launch of another grant initiative. This is simply a clear signal of a change in the approach to building state safety – based on dual-use technologies, which make in parallel for the civilian and defence sector. The programme, implemented in cooperation with science, public administration and the military, is intended to reduce the way from investigation to implementation and respond to the real needs of the modern battlefield and critical infrastructure.
At the heart of this change is practicality: technologies are not only to be developed, but to be tested, scaled and implemented where they are truly needed – from autonomous systems, through artificial intelligence, to solutions that increase the resilience of the state. The common denominator is building the technological sovereignty of Poland and the ability to respond rapidly to dynamically changing threats.
The conference participants – representatives of the government, troops and institutions financing innovation – stressed that MilTech was part of a broader process of redefining the relation between science, economy and defence. In their view, the future of safety is no longer exclusively held in barracks, but in laboratories, start-ups and R & D centres, where solutions are developed that can change both the marketplace and modern military operations.
Statements by representatives of the public administration, defence sector and science, participating in the conference inaugurating the MilTech Acceleration Programme at the office of Akces NCBR, clarify these intentions.
Prof. Marek Gzik, State Secretary, Ministry of discipline and Higher Education
"We are building conditions to full exploit the possible of Polish scientists in the area of state security. present we can say clearly – Polish discipline has nothing to be ashamed of, we compare to the leading centres in Europe and in the world.
Now we are taking another step: we want to decision from the thought to real implementations, while building technological sovereignty and a strong, innovative economy. Projects developed under the programme respond to the real challenges of modern times, including those arising from the experience of the war in Ukraine."
Cezary Tomczyk, State Secretary, Ministry of Defence
"Today on the battlefield we see a breakthrough – innovation, especially in the area of unmanned systems, is truly changing the course of action. Poland cannot fall behind.
We were not talking about selecting the most interesting projects on paper, but about solutions that could be actually implemented in the Armed Forces. due to the fact that the real art is not to buy technology abroad, but to make it in Poland and make it work for future generations.
This is besides a change of reasoning – safety is not solely the work of the military, but of the full state, including discipline and innovation."
Prof. Jerzy Małachowski, manager of the National Centre for investigation and Development
"The function of the NCBR is to build a bridge between science, business and armed forces – and this programme is simply a very concrete example.
We can see present that ideas developed earlier in the technological community mature until the commercialisation stage. Thanks to their cooperation with Akces NCBR they can decision from investigation to real implementations.
We make the full ecosystem – from programmes for young scientists to large initiatives to finance defence technologies. This is simply a long-term strategy for building state capacity in the area of safety and innovation."
Brig-Gen Marcin Górka, manager of MON Innovation Department
"The planet has changed – innovation is now faster in the civilian sector than in the conventional defence industry. That's why we request to learn to adapt and implement them quickly.
Programs specified as MilTech let us to identify the best solutions, test them in conditions akin to the real ones and implement them on a scale that meets the needs of the army.
Our goal is to guarantee that technology is not always 1 step ahead of us, but that it gives advantage to a soldier – it increases its effectiveness and safety.” (JC)
