European Defense Tech Hackathon – Pristina

Time to Accelerate European Defense Innovation 🚀

Join us and 100+ hackers from all across Europe and beyond for the European Defense Tech Hackathon on September 4-6, 2026, in Pristina, Kosovo.

Kosovo is a place where security is a lived reality — shaped by history and constant pressure on infrastructure and institutions.

That makes it one of the few environments in Europe where the gap between “cool prototype” and “actually useful” is immediately obvious. We're thrilled to bring the European Defense Tech Hackathon here together with the Innovation Centre Kosovo this September 2025.

Connect with fellow defense innovators, meet potential co-founders, and build projects with real-world impact that could save lives.

We’ll bring challenges rooted in pressing defense and security problems — and you’re welcome to bring your own ideas. Throughout the event, you’ll get hands-on guidance from experienced mentors, and we'll support you to take your project closer to real-world deployment 🚀

​​Wanna come as a visitor? Join our EDTH Community here: https://community.eurodefense.tech/

Focus Areas

Border security & situational awarenessCounter-UAS (detection, tracking, low-cost intercept)Resilient communications & mesh networksCritical infrastructure protection (energy, water, telecom)Intelligence fusion & real-time data analysisGNSS-denied navigation & positioningCivil-military coordination & crisis response toolsElectronic warfare & spectrum awareness

Goal

1) Solve real defense and security challengesEach hackathon is driven by problems sourced from operators on the ground across Europe.

2) Launch careers and companiesWhether you're entering defense or building a startup, we connect you with talent, funding, and pathways to deployment.

3) Strengthen Europe’s defense ecosystemThis is where builders meet real problems — and ship solutions that matter.

Visitors

​​​​If you’re curious about the outcomes and what the teams have built, you can join the Demo Day on Sunday 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/

Agenda

Friday, September 4, 2026

Kick-off Day

12:00 - Doors open, Networking

13:00 - Welcome by Organizers, Keynote

14:00 - Workshops, Team Formation, and Open-ended Networking

17:00 - Presentation of Mentors and Challenges

18:00 - Start of Hacking

Saturday, September 5, 2026

Hacking continues all day

Sunday, September 6, 2026

10:00 - Testing of Presentations

12:00 - Lunch Break, End of Hacking

Demo Day (Open to Visitors)

13:00 - Pitches of the winning teams

15:00 - Award Ceremony

15:30 - After-party & Networking