International investors are positioning for Ukraine’s post-war tech boom, driving average investment deals from $300,000 to $1 million as the country transforms from a low-cost outsourcing destination into what experts call a potential “European tech powerhouse.”
This shift shows Ukraine building future economic independence while the war continues.
The country moves beyond survival to a strategic positioning that hopes to reshape Europe’s technology landscape.
The transformation reflects Ukrainian determination to escape the “cheap labor” trap that keeps countries economically dependent.
Europe bets on Ukraine’s innovation resilience
Speaking at yesterday’s “Innovations to Rebuild Ukraine” conference at America House Lviv, mainly attended by young tech innovators, startuppers, and entrepreneurs, Markus Ciupek, Vice President of the Czech-Ukrainian Chamber of Industry & Commerce, acknowledged that while current foreign investments focus on reconstruction and energy,
“Ukraine is no longer a country where you invest because of low labor costs.”
The Defense Tech Valley 2025 summit, held on September 16- 17, confirmed it by securing over $100 million in international commitments: battle-tested Ukrainian innovations attract global attention.
Ciupek pointed to concrete examples of companies already establishing production: Czech industrial-technological giant Czechoslovak Group and German defense technology firm Quantum Systems, which operates two reconnaissance drone factories employing 250 people in Ukraine.
Some other Czech firms actively seek to relocate drone operations to Ukraine, Ciupek added, while major defense contractors from Germany like Rheinmetall operate in the country, albeit under the radar due to the classified nature of most of their work.
“Ukrainian universities produce good automation engineers, and I see Ukraine becoming a European production powerhouse,”
Ciupek said, noting that while about 50% of automotive investments pulled out after February 2022, production investments would follow as soon as fighting ends.
The Estonian model scaled up
Mikko-Pekka Hanski, Chairman of Finland’s Yleinen Työttömyyskassa, drew parallels to the Estonian tech breakthrough:
“Think of what happened in Estonia with Skype and the explosion its success brought with it? Ukraine is 30 times bigger, so multiply what will happen here by 30!”
The comparison highlights Ukraine’s potential scale advantage. With over 300,000 tech professionals, Ukraine’s workforce dwarfs Estonia’s Skype-era talent pool.
One day later, the scale advantage becomes visible at Lviv’s IT Arena, one of Eastern Europe’s largest tech events, demonstrating how Ukraine’s tech community pursues ambitious growth despite ongoing conflict.
Defense innovation drives dual-use breakthroughs
The war has accelerated Ukraine’s evolution beyond traditional IT services; the country was already strong long before the full-scale invasion.
Ukrainian defense companies have grown 218% by selling directly to military units, bypassing traditional government contracting and creating battle-tested solutions that now attract international interest.
Margo Deckard, Co-Founder of satellite communications company Lynk Global, emphasized dual-use technology potential:
“The Defense market is steady, but the civil market is always bigger.”
According to her, a dual-use approach can offer the best of both worlds.
She praised Ukraine’s vertical integration approach: “The Ukrainian way of producing everything in-house and integrating vertically is smart.” In her words, Americans understand this and would value it as a strong move, meaning the company is in it for the long run.
Anne Lebreton-Wolf, Founder of ALW Finance & Innovation, noted that while “big French defense tech is reluctant to spread their IP,” civil energy, infrastructure, and healthcare applications offer more cooperation opportunities. She urged young Ukrainian tech entrepreneurs to actively seek contacts with them.
Mikko-Pekka Hanski pointed out that not all Ukrainian innovation has to be defence-focused.
Healthcare innovation is gaining momentum, so much so that Hanski described it as “spectacular,” though remaining small-scale. Still, numerous startups and innovations are proliferating across the country.
From aid recipient to strategic partner
The European Union has begun integrating Ukraine into its defense framework through the €150 billion SAFE initiative, positioning Ukraine as a security partner rather than an aid recipient.
Ciupek observed the shift in Ukrainian business attitudes:
“When a couple of years ago, the EU membership perspective was seen as something far off, now Ukrainian companies actively probe and learn from their EU contacts to understand how to do business in the EU, how to build partnerships, and how to be part of EU business and legal culture.”
Yan Shapiro, founder of U-Nation and the ecosystem builder who organized the conference, stressed Ukraine’s evolving approach: “We have to change our attitude from selling what we have to start adding value,” noting he’s already seeing this transformation happen.
Building while missiles strike
With Ukraine’s IT sector projected to reach $4.95 billion by 2030, the country appears positioned to turn wartime innovations into peacetime economic advantages.
“The future has to be now,” Deckard concluded—words that capture Ukrainian tech’s determination to build tomorrow’s economy while fighting today’s war.