Occam Industries, a defence technology startup focused on autonomous drone operations, has raised £2.6 million in a pre-seed round led by Presto Tech Horizons with participation from Antler, Freedom Fund and TYR.vc. The round follows completion of assessment as fit for integration testing by the Ukrainian defence tech cluster Brave1. Capital will be used to accelerate Ukrainian adoption across the entire front line and develop further support capabilities delivered via autonomous systems.
Automating the front line has been a priority for Ukraine since the rise of drone warfare. Despite the widespread availability of low-cost drones, most deployments still rely on continuous human control, creating a scalability bottleneck. Occam removes this constraint with software-only autonomy, enabling platforms that once required a human pilot to operate independently from outside communication or GPS, making them immune from signals interference and jamming.
Participation in field evaluations through Ukraine’s national defence platform Brave1 marks a shift from controlled pilots to operational relevance under live conditions. In 2025, approximately 54,700 drone attacks were recorded in Ukraine, compared with about 11,000 in 2024. Drones accounted for roughly 96 % of all aerial weapons deployed, up from around 30 % at the start of the air war in 2022. Following field tests conducted in late January via the TEST in Ukraine platform, the next stage will be a Proof of Concept based on a Ukrainian unmanned platform, adapted to complex weather and combat conditions.
Alongside accelerating Ukrainian deployment, Occam is starting paid adoption projects with European defence primes, with deployments expected this year. Brave1 is pursuing collaboration between Occam and select Ukrainian manufacturers to bring the technology to the Ukrainian market.
Ukraine is not a pilot or test market. It’s the most demanding operating environment for autonomous systems anywhere in the world right now. Every assumption is tested under pressure: latency, reliability, operator load, decision-making. What we build at Occam is shaped by that reality and then honed in combat conditions. Fundamentally, if a system cannot perform at the zero-line, we cannot trust troops or security to it, and it has no place in modern defence.
Gui Wainwright, Co-founder & CEO
Occam impressed us with their ability to turn ambition into operational reality at an incredible pace. They deploy, learn, and iterate under conditions dictated by the front line. Gui has an exceptional ability to rally people around a clear mission, and the team executes on it with urgency and discipline. Combined with a software-only autonomy stack that works without GPS or external connectivity, this is a solution that is not just novel, but fundamentally different.
Matej Luhovy, Partner at Presto Tech Horizons
We often say that founders and teams need to learn quickly, adapt under pressure, thrive in ambiguity, and stay focused on outcomes – but we aren’t usually imagining environments this extreme. Occam is a team honed to excel under exceedingly challenging conditions, and to respond daily to real-world constraints.
Hannah Leach, Partner at Antler
The future of defense technologies is being shaped and tested in Ukraine today. Brave1 has created a platform where international partners can trial their solutions, exchange expertise, and work with us to address emerging security challenges. AI is one of our key priorities, as it is fundamentally transforming the nature of combat operations. We highly value the fact that British technology companies like Occam are working directly with Ukraine to respond to real frontline needs – an experience that strengthens not only Ukraine, but Europe as a whole.
Andrii Hrytseniuk, CEO at Brave1
