OSTRAVA, Czech Republic. On Tuesday, 24 March 2026, the Czech team of Decent Cybersecurity took part in the Defence Tech Innovation 2026 conference in Ostrava, a day-long strategic platform that brought together the defense industry, the research community, and the public sector to discuss the technological future of defense and national resilience.
The conference assembled a strong line-up of decision-makers and experts, Minister of Industry and Trade, former Defence Minister Lubomír Metnar, directors of government departments and generals of the Army of the Czech Republic, representatives of the Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic, Czechoslovak Group (CSG), and Tatra Trucks, the Vice-Rector of VŠB Technical University of Ostrava, and the Governor of the host region.
The opening panel, dedicated to innovation as the foundation of Czech resilience and defense capability, set the tone for the day. The discussion among Jan Rafaj (Confederation of Industry), Member of Parliament Robert Králíček, Bohuslav Přikryl (Czechoslovak Group), and representatives of the Army underscored how essential it is to connect industry, the state, and research. A keynote by Martin Švík, Technical Sales Leader and CTO at IBM, reinforced the same message.
From a technical standpoint, the panel on artificial intelligence and quantum technologies stood out as a particular highlight. Petr Kavalíř, Government Commissioner for Quantum Technologies, clearly outlined where the Czech Republic holds a genuine competitive advantage as well as where its opportunities lie, themes that resonate directly with Decent Cybersecurity’s own focus on post-quantum security. Equally valuable was the panel on opportunities for Czech business within EU and NATO programs, including NATO DIANA, which offered a number of concrete pointers on how companies can get involved.
In this context, Leoš Maurer, Director of the Defence Hub at the CzechInvest agency and Lead Manager of the NATO DIANA CZ accelerator, made a notable contribution across two panels, one of which he moderated. Drawing on his extensive practice and experience in these roles, he shared a wealth of practical advice with prospective applicants and innovators, based on his work with previous cohorts of these programs.
The afternoon block, featuring Radomír Smolka (Tatra Trucks) and Jakub Kapuš (Spacemanic), confirmed that defense today is not merely a necessity but also a significant opportunity, particularly for dual-use technologies.
“It was a well-organized event with a meaningful program and the right people in one place,“ said Karel Marčík, representing Decent Cybersecurity at the conference. “The discussions on AI, quantum, and dual-use technologies reflect exactly where Europe’s security future is heading, and where a company like ours can contribute. We will certainly be back next year.”
The closing networking session rounded off the day, providing an opportunity to establish several promising contacts, that have the potential to grow into concrete cooperation.
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