– South Summit Madrid 2026, co-organized by IE University, this year has a vertical on Defense & AI, on the role of Artificial Intelligence, dual-use and deep tech technologies in European technological, business and security strategy. Under the heading 'Technology, Security and Strategic Autonomy', the conference brought together experts from institutions, large companies, startups and international investors, as well as the Ministry of Defence, to analyse how to strengthen critical capabilities in Europe in an increasingly complex geopolitical context.
The vertical kicked off with the participation of Jyoti Hirani-Driver, COO of DIANA, NATO's innovation accelerator. The conversation focused on how the Atlantic Alliance is promoting collaboration with startups and dual-use technologies in areas such as Artificial Intelligence, space tech, quantum, energy, cybersecurity and technological resilience. "What the wars in Ukraine and Iran have shown us is that technological adaptation is not an abstract term, but a necessity," Hirani-Driver said. The COO of NATO Diana also stressed that "the EU is beginning to wake up in terms of defence. On the one hand, we are taking more and more risks in investments and, above all, we no longer work as 32 different ecosystems, but as one."
One of the central moments of the vertical has come with 'Europe's Defense Industry: Built to Last or Built to Lead?', a conversation on the role of the European defence industry in a scenario marked by technological acceleration, global competition and the need to develop its own capabilities. Amparo Moraleda, president of Airbus, analysed the challenges facing the industry to move from a logic of resistance to one of technological and industrial leadership. "One of the big problems we face is that approximately 80% of European defence spending ends up outside Europe. We need to spend more, spend better and spend within Europe," he said.
During the first day of South Summit Madrid 2026, the strategic role of space infrastructure in European security and competitiveness was also addressed. In the session 'The Orbital Advantage: Space as Europe's Strategic Infrastructure', Pedro Duque, president of Hispasat, analysed how satellite communications, connectivity, Earth observation and orbital capabilities have become critical assets for Europe's defence, technological autonomy and resilience. "The dependence on space capabilities becomes even more evident in conflict contexts. The war in Ukraine has highlighted the extent to which communications, observation and intelligence depend on space," Duque stressed.
The session 'Spain's Two-Speed Defense Tech Bet' addressed the moment that the Spanish technological defense ecosystem is experiencing. Miguel Acosta, co-founder and CTO of Arquetipo, the first Spanish venture builder specialising in defence and Artificial Intelligence, participated in it. "Defensive sovereignty is not just a matter of capability, but of having the technology and knowing what you want to do with it. To do this, all the facilities for startups must be put in place. Bureaucratic problems for entrepreneurs often slow down that sovereignty," Acosta said.
The debate continued with the panel 'Building in the Gray Zone: Founders on Defense Tech's Real Frontier', focused on the real challenges of building defense tech companies in Europe. Vicente González, co-founder and COO of FOSSA Systems; Adrián Senar, co-founder and CEO of Kreios Space, and José Antonio García Gallego, CEO and founder of Inventia Kinetics, agreed on how much the defensive ecosystem has changed in recent years, highlighting DIANA's role as an accelerator.
"For us, as entrepreneurs, it is very difficult to access the defensive ecosystem of any country other than Spain. For that, DIANA is the key that has allowed us to continue growing," said González. For his part, Senar highlighted the good times we are living in to undertake in defence, since we have "AI, money from governments and private funds, but, above all, the needs".
The geopolitical dimension of innovation has also been high on the agenda, through the session 'Geopolitical Foresight for Ecosystem Strategy'. Sean Seton-Rogers, co-founder and partner at PROfounders Capital, and Tim Chrisman, director at HavocAI, have analysed how international tensions, economic security, supply chains and technological resilience are modifying investment decisions and the strategy of innovation ecosystems.
"The worst-case scenario we can contemplate for Europe is that the United States and China embark on a race leaving Europe behind. The best: a technological Europe, with stable governments and armies, that does not want to compete but to share," said Seton-Rogers.
The day concluded with the session 'Dual Use, Double Impact: Accelerating Autonomy', focused on dual technologies with civil and strategic application. In it, Fiona Wong, an expert linked to strategic technologies and new industrial capabilities related to defence and technological resilience, and Thomas Tanghe, a specialist in critical technologies and strategic innovation applied to autonomy and security, analysed how these solutions can accelerate European autonomy and generate impact beyond the military sphere.
Three days of entrepreneurship and innovation in #SouthSummit26
Tomorrow, Thursday, June 4, South Summit will have the honor of receiving His Majesty King Felipe VI, who will meet the participants of the Startup Competition and talk with the world's greatest leaders in the entrepreneurial and innovative ecosystem. He will be accompanied by the Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, and both will be able to experience first-hand how Artificial Intelligence has revolutionized the way in which a project is created at the AI Forum, a space designed in collaboration with IE University.
South Summit Madrid 2026, which is being held until next Friday, June 5 at La Nave, will bring together more than 600 international speakers, 20,000 attendees, nearly 4,900 startups and more than 2,000 investors, corporations and institutions from around the world for three days. Under the slogan 'AI Convergence', this fifteenth edition analyzes how Artificial Intelligence is redefining industrial competitiveness, technological sovereignty, defense, digital infrastructure, energy, investment and Europe's ability to develop its own technology.
#SouthSummit26 brings together the institutional support of the Secretary of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence, the Community of Madrid and the Madrid City Council, as well as the support of companies and entities such as Mutua Madrileña, Google for Startups, BBVA Spark, Wayra – Telefónica Innovation and BStartup of Banco Sabadell.