In the past two and a half years, the Russo-Ukrainian War has uncovered how war on the modern battlefield is no longer exclusively waged on the physical domain, and new capabilities can be leveraged instead of conventional approaches to defence. Armed conflict has expanded to encompass new battlefronts that increasingly depend on the virtual domain (Furlong et al, 2022). Cutting-edge technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI) are reshaping armed conflict, impacting every aspect of warfare from automated frontline systems to logistics, and enhancing multi-domain situational awareness. According to the Land4Developers platform, a marketplace and network of industrial engineering experts from Ukraine, over a dozen Ukrainian companies offer products and services in predictive analytics (Land 4 Developers, 2022). The partnership between tech firms and the Ukrainian military, which allegedly includes having a software engineer within each battalion, is sparking a new wave of development and testing with military AI (Bergengruen, 2024). In resisting Russia’s invasion, the Ukrainian defence proved to be better equipped than anticipated (Furlong et al., 2022). Ukraine’s military performance has offered valuable lessons for both emerging and already established military powers on the benefits of partnering with tech companies to gain quicker access to the latest innovative technologies.

Although the Russo-Ukrainian conflict’s outcome is still uncertain, it has highlighted the critical role of public-private partnerships in rapidly advancing military technology. The integration of AI-enabled tools in Ukraine’s defence demonstrates that collaboration between governmental bodies and private tech firms is essential for the swift development and deployment of cutting-edge military technologies. This paper explores how the partnership between the public and private sectors has shaped Ukraine’s defence strategies and examines the implications for enhancing military interoperability across Europe.

First, this research analyses the changing nature of warfare, focusing on the strategic role of AI. The analysis of modern battlefield dynamics will be based on the European Defence Agency’s definition of ‘emerging disruptive technologies’. The following section examines the deployment of AI-enabled tools by the Ukrainian defence forces and analyses the role of European countries and commercial entities in providing Ukraine with such tools. Offering insights on how AI can enhance interoperability among European military forces, this paper investigates/ reflects on the implications of the use of AI for European defence. The goal of this paper is to demonstrate how Ukraine’s experience with integrating AI-powered military tools developed by tech firms can serve as a model for improving collaboration and interoperability among European military forces. By examining Ukraine’s use of these technologies and their impact, this paper aims to highlight a unified approach to leveraging AI to strengthen defence capabilities and foster better coordination between European states.