Espoo is home to a growing number of deep tech companies developing solutions for defence and dual-use applications.
Initially, this article was supposed to spotlight Metaktik, a recent Aalto University spin-out which recently raised €1 million in pre-seed funding.
But when we prepared to interview Metaktik CEO Tuukka Kuuramaa, the story took an unexpected turn. Rather than keeping the spotlight for himself, Kuuramaa wanted to share it with Ari Noso, the CEO of Rhoshield.
Metaktik and Rhoshield have a lot in common. Both are working ambitiously to develop solutions for the defence industry. Both have participated in the DEFINE accelerator program in Riihimäki. And both are members of Defence Tech Hub.
Now, Kuuramaa and Noso are meeting at A Grid on the Aalto University campus in Espoo to lay the groundwork for their new strategic R&D and commercial partnership in radar, sensor fusion, and antenna technologies.
Lightweight antenna technology built to scale
Metaktik’s product is a thin and flexible antenna with a metasurface. The synthetic surface, initially developed at Aalto University, has properties that make it well suited to defence applications.
“We have a different approach to metacells, allowing us to produce even thinner membranes, and solutions that work with even lower frequencies,” Kuuramaa says.
This means a drone equipped with Metaktik’s antenna is very lightweight, and importantly, more difficult to detect.
It is a radar and communication antenna that can be integrated into various platforms. It also has a major advantage when it comes to scale.
“We could make these flexible antennas with a roll-to-roll mechanism, enabling one production line to make 25,000 antennas in a day,” Kuuramaa estimates.
AI and sensor fusion for smarter drone detection
Rhoshield’s focus in the defence sector is on AI-native swarm orchestration and sensor fusion.
“We’re an AI company. Instead of building drones, we collaborate with hardware manufacturers,” CEO Ari Noso explains.
Rhoshield’s anti-drone system combines data from several types of sensors.
“Some airborne objects may not appear on radar, but they still produce sound. Some objects can be detected through radio signals, while others emit no radio signal at all. To detect a threat effectively, you need multiple layers of different sensors," Noso says.
“Metaktik has the advantage that the sensor is so lightweight that it can be mounted on a drone, while the same technology can also be scaled up into a larger radar system – both are interesting to us”.
Complementary technologies, shared ambitions
Noso and Kuuramaa met for the first time at a defence-related event in France. Now they are here at Aalto campus, in the heart of Finland’s deep tech startup scene.
It turns out they have one more thing in common: both have studied here. Noso studied computer science and Kuuramaa electrical engineering at Helsinki University of Technology, which is now part of Aalto University.
“There used to be only tech students here, but now there’s also the business and arts school. This place has changed a lot,” Kuuramaa has noticed.
The idea behind Aalto University is to drive interdisciplinary collaboration. That same spirit of collaboration is now reflected in the partnership Noso and Kuuramaa are building.
“We realised that we have very similar objectives. We work with communication, sensors and radars, while they focus on sensor fusion and swarm intelligence of drones. I believe we can support each other well,” Kuuramaa says.
Defence Tech Hub turns connections into opportunities
Rhoshield was founded in 2025, while Metaktik spun out this spring. For young companies, having the right networks is crucial.
Established at the beginning of 2025, Defence Tech Hub has quickly grown into a network of nearly 100 companies. Metaktik and Rhoshield are both part of Defence Tech Hub and the DEFINE accelerator network in Riihimäki.
“When you’re part of both, you don’t miss anything. It is the perfect combination for defence tech startups in Finland,” Noso points out.
Noso talks about a recent business contact facilitated by Enter Espoo’s Ossi Ritvos and Miska Hakala, which proved pivotal for Rhoshield.
For both companies, these kinds of connections are where the value of Defence Tech Hub becomes tangible: bringing the right people together and creating opportunities that can grow into new business, partnerships and technologies.
“These are complex challenges that no one can solve alone. We can each take on a small part and help solve it – and the more players we have in this field, the better,” Noso says.
