The three-day defense and technologies development camp, hackathon, DELTA NAVY surpassed all expectations. Having wrapped October 27 at the Lithuanian Navy in Klaipėda, it resulted in creation of such product prototypes as a laser communication system for ships at sea, drone, and personnel, and human resources management systems, over the 48 hours of the event aboard LNS Jotvingis headquarters and supply ship.

50 inventors from Vilnius and Kaunas University of Technology, Vilnius Gediminas Technical and Klaipėda University, advanced technology, programming and engineering companies formed 11 teams. Each of them designed and presented technical solutions, prototypes, or even functioning equipment that could be used by the Lithuanian Armed Forces.

“An innovative National Defence System is our objective, therefore technology development camps is a great environment where the society can be introduced to the challenges in the National Defence System. Half a hundred of subject matter experts who are interested in defence technology spent the three days of the hackathon looking for solutions to the challenges. We hope that the participants will continue having the interest and creating in the field of defence technology. Today I can express my delight about the fact that the participating teams responded to the issues and remarks presented at the hackathon in real time and made their equipment and systems suitable for the needs of the Lithuanian Navy to the maximum,” Head of Research and Technology Division of the Defence Materiel Agency under the Ministry of National Defence Laurynas Mockaitis says.

The main EUR 1,000 prize established by the Ministry of National Defence was presented to VGTU-AGAI2 team for developing a unique solutions for an optical communication system that enables several ships to exchange signals when radio communication is not allowed or not possible.

“We had decided to design a receiver and a transmitter before coming to the DELTA NAVY hackathon. However, consultation with the mentors and other participants made us change the idea of the need of the Lithuanian Navy and we decide to create an optical communication system. We plan to carry out first tests of the prototype as soon as in spring. It is a unique product because it enables concurrent optical communications among many ships. As far as we know, there is no analogous product available on the market in public,” Ivan Suzdalev, member of the VGTU-AGAI2 says.

The second place prize of EUR 500 established by the Lithuanian Navy Office Club was awarded to VGTU AGAI1 for an unmanned aerial vehicle system for at-sea search and rescue efforts. The third place winners Dr.VUFF team received EUR 300 from the organisers for a long-range high-safety laser communication solution. Team Leaneria was given the special prize established by Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, three-month membership in VGTU “Linkmenų fabrikas“, for developing a personnel and resources management system.

DELTA NAVY gave the participants an exclusive chance to check the potential of their products in consultations with markets experts. Mentors from the Ministry of National Defence, Lithuanian Navy, Enterprise Lithuania Public Institution, Agency for Science, Innovation and Technology, and potential investors and other representatives of the start-up ecosystem shared expert advice with the hackathon participants.

“The participating teams had clear expertise, we think that many of them have a real potential to commercialise their products and to compete with similar solutions from foreign manufacturers. Even though the products created during the hackathon are highly specific and complex because of the area of their application, excellent results have been provide not only by experienced specialists from higher education institutions but also the young participants who are still going to school. It shows that innovation is highly relevant across different age groups and that our country has a strong potential to become a technological innovation hub,” Roberta Rudokienė, the Head of the Start-up Ecosystem Development Unit of the Public Institution Enterprise Lithuania, says.

DELTA NAVY is the second defence and technologies creative camp (hackathon) in the Lithuanian Armed Forces and the first one in the Lithuanian Navy. Such events are organized in order to stimulate defence industry and development of corresponding ecosystems.

The hackathon was organized by the Ministry of National Defence, Lithuanian Navy, Start-up Ecosystem Development Unit of the Enterprise Lithuania Public Institution, Agency for Science, Innovation and Technology, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, Kaunas University of Technology, and others.