Ukraine and NATO are joining forces to improve battlefield medical care. To this end, the 17th NATO Innovation Challenge will be held, the theme of which will be "Medical Care in Accessible and Unprotected Battlespace," The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine reports.
The competition was announced by the NATO-Ukraine Joint Analysis, Training and Education Center (JATEC) in cooperation with NATO's Allied Command Transformation (ACT).
"The event aims to identify effective joint solutions by Ukraine and NATO for providing frontline medical care tailored to the realities of modern warfare, including prolonged field care and casualty evacuation within the 8-kilometer kill zone under continuous enemy surveillance and frequent drone and artillery attacks that severely complicate and endanger evacuation efforts," the Ministry of Defence explained.
The Ministry of Defense noted that the JATEC team initiated a competition to find effective solutions that would ensure the survival of the wounded and allow safe movement in conditions of constant threat from the enemy.
"Key areas of development focus on practical concepts, systems or integrated architectures supporting medical stabilization, concealment of movement, communication, and evacuation of the wounded in challenging combat environments," the defense department said in a statement.
JATEC and NATO AST invite defense companies from NATO member states and Ukraine, as well as academic institutions, to participate in the competition. The deadline for submitting applications is November 16, 2025. Register to participate at the link.
The announcement of the finalists is scheduled for November 21, and the public defense and demonstration of the selected solutions will take place on December 5 in London.
According to the MoD, the selected finalists will present their solutions to a panel of NATO and Ukrainian experts, national representatives, operational users, and observers.
The previous NATO Innovation Challenge was dedicated to fighting FPV drones on fiber optics. Ukrainian company DONS took third place in the hackathon.