Press Release
For the first time, Cyprus takes its place in one of Europe's most significant defence-innovation initiatives. It has been officially selected by the European Commission as one of eight locations across the EU to host the EUDIS Defence Hackathon 2026 – Autumn Edition.
The event will take place on 15–17 October 2026 in Nicosia, organised by C.D. Multimedia (CDM) in close institutional cooperation with the Cyprus Defence and Space Industry Cluster (CyDSIC), and under the auspices of the Ministry of Defence and the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI).
The EUDIS Defence Hackathon is a flagship initiative of the European Commission (DG DEFIS), under the EU Defence Innovation Scheme (EUDIS). Eight editions will run simultaneously across as many European countries — with Cyprus alongside Austria, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden.
The timing could not be more symbolic: the selection comes at a moment when the National Defence Industry Strategy places the development of the defence ecosystem as a national priority.
The Hackathon and the prizes
The Cyprus edition aspires to be more than an event that ends in 48 hours. It aims to be the start of a pathway that connects talent with resources, research with application, and Cyprus with the European defence ecosystem. That is why we have designed post-hackathon pathways offering concrete support to the teams all the way through to 2028.
The winning teams will share cash prizes of €10,000, while the top three will join the pan-European EUDIS mentoring programme (October–December 2026), culminating in the European final in December.
In parallel, the local support package includes incubation with GRAVITY Ventures, business support from the Cyprus Defence and Space Industry Cluster (CyDSIC), and guidance on the national and European funding landscape from institutional partners. From CDM's side, a presentation slot is offered on the main stage of the next conference-exhibition, BATTLEFIELD ReDEFiNED 2028.
48 hours, 3 challenges, 1 real airfield
The event will bring together 50+ pre-selected startup founders, engineers, and researchers from Cyprus and across Europe, who will develop defence-technology prototypes within 48 hours, around three thematic challenges:
- GNSS-Denied Navigation: autonomous systems able to navigate and complete missions with no reliance on satellite navigation, in a region where GPS interference is a daily operational reality.
- Swarm Coordination & Autonomous Operations: collaboration protocols for unmanned aircraft and robotic systems for search-and-rescue, mapping, and resupply missions, with minimal human control.
- C-UAS – Protection of Critical Infrastructure from UAS: Cyprus's locally designed challenge — developing the "brain" of a protection system: the detection, classification, and intercept-coordination of threats from low-cost unmanned aircraft.
Who can take part
The event is aimed at teams made up of startup founders, engineers, researchers, students, and any other relevant background. The key requirement is that competitors have an existing prototype or MVP (TRL 4+) and wish to develop dual-use applications.
Participants must be adult citizens and residents of an EU Member State, Norway, or Ukraine. Participation is free, held on-site in Nicosia.
Those interested can already register here. Full details on the challenges, criteria, and programme are available on the official event page: EUDIS Defence Hackathon 2026 – Cyprus.
The event is supported by an ecosystem of 15+ partners, including The Cyprus Institute and its Unmanned Systems Research Laboratory, CyRIC, the KIOS Centre of Excellence of the University of Cyprus, EFA Group, Cellock, eBOS Technologies, SignalGenerix, ADDITESS, IANUS, CERANEXT, Tototheo Global, Deloitte Cyprus, and others.
Ecosystem partners so far include Gravity Ventures, Citizens in Power, The Flywheel Venture Studio, and TechIsland, with Invest Cyprus as the official investment partner.
The official media partner is KATHIMERINI.
Stay tuned for the latest developments around the Hackathon and much more.
*The programme is co-funded by the European Union.
