Ukrainian defence startup Swarmer, which develops AI systems for managing drone swarms, has raised $15 million in a Series A funding round. This is the largest investment in a Ukrainian defence-tech company since the full-scale invasion began.
The round was led by U.S. investment firm Broadband Capital Investments and included participation from Swarmer’s existing backers: defence-tech company RG.AI and venture funds Radius Capital, Green Flag Ventures, D3 Ventures and Network VC. The parties did not disclose the company valuation; an industry investor estimated it unofficially in the $35–45 million range.
Swarmer’s flagship product is the Styx AI software, which allows a single operator to control groups of up to 25 drones simultaneously. The system assumes real-time tactical decision-making, leaving the human operator responsible only for target selection and authorization to engage. Styx AI has been trained on data from more than 82,000 combat missions, enabling it to replicate top pilots’ skills and improve operational effectiveness. According to founder and CEO Serhii Kuprienko, the technology has demonstrated effectiveness in combat, having been tested in tens of thousands of missions.
Swarmer was founded in May 2023 by Serhii Kuprienko and Alex Fink. In June 2024 Kuprienko told Reuters that the system would allow a scale-up in drone deployment: where an operator today may control up to five drones, AI can coordinate dozens or even hundreds of platforms effectively.
The company’s first major funding round came in 2024, when it raised $2.7 million. The new Series A financing will support further product development and scaling of a solution that could change approaches to unmanned systems use on the battlefield.
