European Defense Tech Festival - Berlin
Join the Largest Gathering of Defense Tech Builders in Europe
One Hangar. One Weekend. 1000+ Builders Demoing Europe’s Most Promising Defense Tech Projects.
Join us for the first European Defense Tech Festival on August 20-23, 2026, at a secret airport near Berlin, Germany.
Wanna come as a visitor? Join our EDTH Community here: https://community.eurodefense.tech/
Goal
Dozens of projects and companies have emerged from, participated in, or supported the European Defense Tech Hackathon circuit.
Now it’s time to see what they’ve actually built 👀
We’re bringing together 1000+ builders, EDTH alumni, early-stage startups, military operators, investors, procurement officials, and industry leaders for four days in a secret hangar just outside Berlin.
We’ll have a kilometer-long airstrip — enough space to fly everything from quadcopters to fixed-wing drones. Or even entire airplanes.
This is not a hackathon.
This is the next step after the hackathon:
Real operators giving direct feedback, startups meeting industry and procurement, investors scouting emerging capabilities, and teams finding the partners they need to move from prototype to deployment.
If you want to see Europe’s most promising defense tech teams in action — and meet them before everyone else does — this is the place.
Agenda
August 20 | Thursday — Kickoff & Networking
We open the hangar doors.
Meet the people shaping the future of European defense tech: 1000+ operators, founders, investors, procurement officials, engineers, and some of the strongest EDTH alumni teams from across Europe.
Expect workshops, networking, industry showcases, early demos, and conversations that turn into real collaborations.
August 21 | Friday — Build & Prepare
Teams refine their systems, prototypes, and demos.
Mentors, operators, and industry experts will provide direct feedback throughout the day to help teams prepare for field testing and demo day.
August 22 | Saturday — Flight Testing & First Demos
Saturday is where things get real. Teams move outside to test systems in live conditions:
Drone flights
Autonomous systems
Counter-UAS concepts
Communications systems
Sensors and tracking
Rapid iteration in the field
All teams will receive direct feedback. Only the strongest teams will advance to the final demo on Sunday.
August 23 | Sunday — Final Demo Day
The best teams and startups will demo live in front of the entire crowd: investors, military representatives, procurement officials, industry experts, operators, and media.
And of course: one final afterparty before the hangar doors close 🇪🇺🦾🔥
Visitors
The Demo Day on Sunday is public — you can join as an EDTH Community visitor by selecting a Community Visitor ticket.
Not yet part of the EDTH Community?
Get free access to all EDTH Community events for one year, including hackathon demo days, webinars, networking sessions, and our flagship New Defense Summit
Sign up to become a member here: https://community.eurodefense.tech/