NATO Open Innovation Conference & Expo (NOICE) to Join Estonian Defence Week 2026

The NATO Open Innovation Conference & Expo (NOICE), hosted by NATO Allied Command Transformation (ACT), will take place in Tallinn as part of Estonian Defence Week (EDW) 2026.

NOICE 2026 will serve as a focused platform for NATO entities, Allied nations, industry, researchers and military end-users to engage on emerging defence technologies, operational innovation and rapid capability adoption in an increasingly complex security environment.

“Modern defence innovation is no longer measured only by technological sophistication, but by how quickly solutions can be tested, adopted and deployed operationally,” said Anton Poon, Community Manager at NATO Innovation Hub, ACT. “NOICE 2026 is designed to accelerate exactly this process across the Alliance.”

As an integrated element of Estonian Defence Week, NOICE 2026 will place particular emphasis on operational relevance, interoperability and practical cooperation between military practitioners, industry and innovation ecosystems.

NOICE 2026 will also bring together NATO ACT, Allied Command Operations NATO Innovation Forum (NIF) and Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) to discuss how NATO and industry can strengthen cooperation in accelerating defence innovation and capability adoption across the Alliance.

Discussions and workshops will address areas including artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, maritime security, counter-drone technologies, rapid experimentation and emerging disruptive technologies.

The event will additionally showcase NATO ACT’s ongoing work with these technologies, including artificial intelligence and quantum-related capabilities.

Participants will gain direct insight into NATO ACT’s innovation priorities and ongoing experimentation efforts, while exhibitors and technology developers will have opportunities to engage directly with operational stakeholders and defence decision-makers.

The event follows the successful 2025 edition in Copenhagen, which gathered nearly 300 participants from Allied and partner nations, including Ukraine, and focused on security challenges in the Baltic and Arctic regions.

NOICE 2026 will take place on 23–24 September 2026, with an Ice Breaker networking event on 23 September and the main NOICE conference and expo programme on 24 September.

Estonian Defence Week, taking place in Tallinn on 21–25 September 2026, is one of the largest defence and security events in the Baltic region. Returning for its second edition, EDW is designed to bring together the most important domains and leading stakeholders of the defence sector, connecting decision-makers, industry, innovators and partners to strengthen cooperation, showcase capabilities and advance resilience across the region and beyond.