Startup Wise Guys invests in Ukrainian defense company Frontline and Portuguese cyber startup Ethiack

Estonian accelerator Startup Wise Guys has invested $100K in the Ukrainian defense startup Frontline and it participated in the €4M round of Portuguese cyber startup Ethiack. Portuguese Explorer Investments and CoreAngels also joined Ethiack's round.

Founded in Kyiv in 2023 by Oleksii Markhovskyi, Pavlo Kosolapkin, and Yevhenii Tretiak, Frontline has developed the Lenza and Zoom drones, as well as the Burya robotic combat systems, which are used on the battlefield. Linza is a multi-tasking bomber drone with an electronic warfare (EW) resistant control channel and a gyro-stabilized camera. The Burya is a robotic turret for the MK-19 grenade launcher that integrates with situational awareness systems.

The startup will use the investment to scale up drone manufacturing in Ukraine, accelerate R&D, and attract international partners.

Founded in Coimbra in 2022 by Andre Baptista, Jorge Monteiro, and Vitor Pinho, Ethiack is an AI-powered cybersecurity platform that provides continuous testing, vulnerability management, and attack surface management to help companies avoid cyber threats. It combines AI-powered testing for accurate vulnerability detection with human-assisted hacking events to identify complex attack vectors. The startup has 50 customers in nine countries. It has developed critical infrastructure for ANA Airports and Portugal’s Cybersecurity Agency (CNCS).

Ethiack will use the investment to improve its technology and expand into new markets, initially the UK and Europe, and later the US and the Middle East.

Launched in 2012, Estonian Startup Wise Guys is an accelerator that invests in early-stage startups from the Baltic, Central European, and African regions. Startup Wise Guys typically invests up to €500K per startup through multiple funds that manage €45M and are backed by more than 150 investors. The CEO of Startup Wise Guys is Cristobal Alonso.