NATO DIANA Latvia Acceleration Site Opens to Boost Defense Innovation

RIGA - On Thursday, January 22, an official opening ceremony for NATO Defense Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (NATO DIANA) acceleration site in Latvia, UniLab Defence, will be held, representatives of the center informed LETA. NATO DIANA is an innovation program aimed at fostering cooperation between NATO, academia, and the private sector to accelerate development of new defense and security technologies. The opening ceremony will be attended by Defense Minister Andris Spruds (Progressives), Foreign Minister Baiba Braze (New Unity), Canadian Ambassador to Latvia Brian Szwarc, NATO representatives, and UniLab Defence representatives. Latvia is taking part in the NATO DIANA acceleration program call for the first time. Out of 150 startups admitted to the program in the first half of 2026, six will be working in Latvia. It should also be noted that for the first time since the launch of the NATO DIANA innovation program in 2022, a Latvian startup, Deep Space Energy has received support under the auspices of the program and will continue its acceleration program in Poland. Deep Space Energy provides resilient electricity supply in space based on scalable radioisotope systems.