The Battle Field of Things Drone Edition hashtag#Hackathon 2025 is calling all innovators from the drone ecosystem! 

Who are you? 👇

🚁 Drone Manufacturers & Drone Enthusiasts
💻 Software Developers & Hardware Engineers
🎓 Researchers from Universities and Colleges
🤖 AI and Robotics Specialists
🛰️ Sensor and Payload Developers
🛡 Defence Contractors
🏛 Governmental and Non-Governmental Organisations
🌎 And many more!

Come alone or bring a team of colleagues and be part of a groundbreaking event that unites the entire drone ecosystem of Belgium, both civilians and army staff!

All detailed information can be found here :

• https://inno4def.be/both2 
• https://www.linkedin.com/company/innovation-for-defense/

"The Battlefield of Things 2: Drones" is a two-and-a-half-day innovation event that will bring Belgium Defence personnel together with industry experts, drone enthusiasts, researchers, and students. 

Together, participants will push the boundaries of UAS technology. They will also look at the business side of growing the drone ecosystem in Belgium. 

For both experienced professionals and passionate newcomers, this event is a unique opportunity to work on drone hardware and software, to tackle real-world challenges proposed by Belgian Defence, to build network across the drone ecosystem, and shape the future of drone technology.

The Battlefield of Things 2: Drones hackathon revolves around three key challenges: Technology Innovation, Ecosystem Innovation, and Procurement Innovation.

Each challenge includes specific problems identified through workshops with Belgian Defence and industry experts, ensuring real-world impact.
 

Challenges (details below)

1. Low-cost drones for GNSS- and RF- denied environment 
2. Low-cost anti-drone drone 
3. Amplifying the operator  

During dedicated check-in sessions, teams connect with specialists like:

• Gauthier Coton: Belgian Defence Senior Officer (UAS, Training Aircraft, EW lead)
• Jean V.: Defence Tech Specialist (C-UAS/UAS integration, TAK ecosystem)
• Bart Theys: Flanders Make Drone Innovator (Advanced drone tech for defence)
• Bjorn Geuns: SkeyDrone Head of Projects (Drone operations management)
• Sven Nachtergaele: POM West-Vlaanderen Drone Cluster Manager (Ecosystem building)

Challenge 1 : Low-cost drones for GNSS- and RF-denied environment

As jamming technologies rapidly evolve, drones increasingly operate in GNSS- and RF-denied  environments. They still need to carry out complex, multi-step tasks, such as reconnaissance and cargo delivery – or searching for a target in a large GNSS-denied area. 

How might we develop hashtag#lowcost drones (additional hardware cost of maximum EUR 300 per drone) that can carry out such sophisticated tasks?

Think upgraded sensors, swarming, map reading, dynamically identifying gaps in jamming - and of course any other insane ideas you might come up with.

Challenge 2: Low-cost anti-drone drone

As manufacturing of military drones is ramping up worldwide, defending against vast quantities of adversary drones is a likely scenario. Humans – with their limited numbers, need for extensive training, and comparatively slow reflexes – will likely present a bottleneck.

How might we design and deploy low-cost, fully autonomous anti-drone drones that could be deployed by a single operator? Imagine designating a target for the drone and launching it within a few seconds, with minimal use of connectivity or additional hardware.

Bonus question: thinking a little bit ahead, how might we make the deployment and targeting of anti-drone drones completely automated?

Challenge 3 : Amplifying the Operator

A typical drone team consists of 5 people who carry out a variety of tasks: manage multiple drones (ISR, repeater drone, bomber, FPV), last-step drone assembly, communications and command. These jobs require highly specialised personnel.

It's hard to hide teams that are large in the visual and RF spectrum. There are multiple ways of protecting them, such as separating the control centre from the launch site or having fewer teams in the field.

How might we enable operators to control multiple drones at the same time, doing substantially more with the same small team?

Think better human/machine interface and AI; all other ideas are welcome!

The hashtag#ecosystem challenges of the Battlefield of Things Hackathon: Drone Edition! 🚁

Some challenges are simply too big for any one company to tackle. But if we can pool resources of an entire ecosystem, we can move mountains.

Belgian Defence 🇧🇪 faces a potential shortage of skilled drone pilots in a rapid conflict escalation. While basic drone flying skills are easily taught, recruiting personnel with the right mindset and maintaining their military knowledge and skills is challenging.

Or how can we recruit and maintain around 1000 trained drone operators, considering current limitations like expensive equipment, limited airspace and resources for training, and constraints of drone simulators?

At the same time the drone industry faces many challenges. How can we build a useful, sustainable drone ecosystem to meet these challenges? How should this ecosystem be managed and financed?

The hashtag#procurement challenges of the Battlefield of Things Hackathon: Drone Edition! 🚁

Belgian Defence would like to ensure national autonomy in drone production. Belgium's current drone manufacturing capabilities are insufficient for both peacetime and wartime demands. Although BELDEF can support the development of a drone manufacturing ecosystem through R&D funding, this requires a solid foundation.

A successful Dual Use approach is a likely path to attain the necessary growth in manufacturing capacity to meet the needs of Belgian Defence.

How would the Belgian drone hashtag#ecosystem (combining the private sector, academia, and Defence) need to be organised to become a competitive European actor for large-scale manufacturing contracts?

Think about – for example – pooling resources to substantially increase shared business development activity in the civilian and military space. Don’t forget other aspects (such as R&D and collective procurement) that might need to be coordinated.

Another way to ensure scalability of manufacturing, ease of in-the-field updates and upgrades to drones, interoperability between components and systems, and creating a genuine competitive advantage for the Belgian drone ecosystem is taking a Modular Open Systems Architecture (MOSA) approach adopted by all ecosystem members.

How can the Belgian drone ecosystem define an affordable drone system (including hashtag#hardware, hashtag#sensors, hashtag#firmware, hashtag#controller, and hashtag#software) that follows a MOSA approach and ensure it stays up-to-date?

What’s more, currently available R&D budgets tend to focus on low-TRL research projects, leaving a gap for faster adoption of high-TRL research.

How might the Belgian drone ecosystem create and continuously evolve a shared technology roadmap in consultation with BELDEF?