Join the Hub
JOIST Innovation Park · Larissa, Greece

A Security-Enabled Gateway for
Defence Innovation
in Greece

Central Node · EU & NATO Ecosystem · SE Europe

The only EU Secret certified Defence Innovation Hub in Greece.

A high-trust platform for startups, defence stakeholders, research institutions, and capital to build, test, and scale dual-use and defence technologies from Greece into the wider European ecosystem.

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Operational Snapshot

2026

Positioning

Defence and dual-use platform for Southeast Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Edge

Privately operated infrastructure capable of classified collaboration and cleared consortium participation, the only such facility in the Greek private sector.

Members

Startups, primes, universities, funds, research labs, and institutional partners.

Use Cases

Consortium formation, readiness assessment, funding support, market entry, and ecosystem access.

EU projects
100 +
via iED partner ecosystem
European networks
10
DIHNet, 28digital, and more
EU PARTNERS
4000 +
organizations, institutions, SMEs
Countries
10
iED partner reach
FUNDING
€ 0 Β+
from EU/NATO programmes
Physical Infrastructure

The Facility in Larissa,
Greece

EU Secret Certified
Current Status

JOIST Defence Innovation Hub is in its initial deployment phase. The platform builds on the infrastructure and EU programme experience of the JOIST Innovation Park and its institutional partner iED, and is currently expanding its network of partners across industry, research, and defence stakeholders. Early participation is focused on pilot collaborations and consortium formation for upcoming European calls.

Our DNA

Vision & Mission

The Hub is positioned as a convergence layer: not only a place, but a structured operating environment where capital, technology, institutional access, and defence relevance can meet in a credible way.

01 / Vision

The Central Node

The Hub is positioned as a convergence layer: not only a place, but a structured operating environment where capital, technology, institutional access, and defence relevance can meet in a credible way.

02 / Mission

Convergence Platform

The Hub operates as a collaboration platform accelerating the development and commercial exploitation of defence technologies. It bridges startups, universities, research centres, armed forces, investment capital, and European and NATO programmes, turning capability creation into funded projects, prototypes, and market entry.

Startups & Scale-ups
Armed Forces
Universities
Investment Funds
EU/NATO Programmes
Defence Primes
Location

Strategic Geopolitical Position

Greece sits at the convergence of three continents and three seas. JOIST positions its members at the exact point where EU institutions, NATO commands, and an arc of active conflicts create the highest concentration of defence relevance in Europe.

NATO Eastern Flank

Greece anchors the southeastern corner of NATO’s most active perimeter.

Three Seas, Three Continents

The Aegean, Mediterranean, and Black Sea converge within Greece’s operational reach.

EU Funding Access

JOIST maps members to the right funding programme, based on their technology readiness level.

€256+ Billion

Effective Soft Landing

Foreign defence companies entering Southeast Europe need a trusted and cleared local partner.

Focus Domains

Key Technology Areas

Four priority domains address the most critical capability gaps across EU and NATO defence and dual-use programmes, from autonomous systems to AI-enabled cyber resilience.

T-01

AI Defence Systems

Command and control systems, sensor fusion platforms, predictive threat analytics, and autonomous decision support.

T-02

Autonomous Systems

UAVs, autonomous maritime vehicles, swarm coordination technologies, and unmanned ground systems.

T-03

Maritime Security

Maritime surveillance, anti-drone systems for naval environments, and AI-based anomaly detection in shipping lanes.

T-04

Cyber Defence

Military network protection, cyber attack detection and response, and AI-based cybersecurity analytics.

EU
★
SECRET

EU Secret Capability

JOIST is the only EU Secret certified Defence Innovation Hub in Greece, making it a critical enabler for classified European and NATO defence programmes at a moment when access, not expertise alone, determines who participates.

End-to-end hosting and management of EU Secret level projects, covering secure meetings, documentation handling, and full deliverable lifecycle management. As the only private facility in Greece capable of supporting this classification level, the Hub provides the compliant environment that primes, international defence companies, and Ministries of Defence require to execute sensitive programmes without establishing their own local presence.

Security-cleared status confers inherent credibility with the Hellenic Ministry of Defence and General Staff, opening access to advisory roles, technology scouting mandates, and direct institutional collaboration. This institutional standing underpins everything else JOIST offers to international partners: a recognised, trusted counterpart inside the Greek defence establishment.

JOIST can participate as a cleared entity in EU and NATO classified programmes, including EDF and EDIP calls restricted to security-cleared organisations. For consortia assembling bids in high-value restricted funding streams, this eligibility is not incidental. It is frequently the condition on which participation depends.

JOIST can sponsor EU Secret clearances for qualified professionals, creating a cleared talent pool that does not otherwise exist at this scale in the Greek private sector. The result is a scalable model for placing high-value personnel into classified projects and partner organisations, reducing lead times and administrative friction for incoming programmes.

Foreign defence companies operating on classified matters in Greece require a cleared local partner. JOIST fills that role: cleared infrastructure, institutional relationships, and a compliant environment already in place, so incoming partners do not build from scratch. The practical result is a direct pipeline into partnerships, joint ventures, and programme participation that would otherwise take years to construct independently.

Operating Model

How It Works

The Hub coordinates infrastructure access, proposal development, testing relationships, marketplace visibility, and a longer-term venture pathway, operating as an active delivery environment rather than a directory or affiliation programme.

Infrastructure Orchestration

  • Drone testing zones
  • Maritime surveillance environments
  • Cyber-defence simulations
  • Robotics, AI, cyber, and drone labs

Programme Enablement

  • Consortium formation support
  • Proposal writing assistance
  • EDF / SAFE / DIANA / Horizon navigation
  • Defence project participation support

Market & Industry Interface

  • Transition path for Thessaly and Central Greece companies
  • Strategic links with major defence groups
  • Collaboration with the Greek defence industry
  • Digital defence technology marketplace
Startups & Scale-ups
Regional SMEs & industry
Armed forces & institutions
European primes & investors
Funding Logic

Capability Development Path

Technologies mature through a staged logic: Horizon Europe as an entry point for research, EDF for prototype development, and SAFE for production and procurement scale-up.

Stage 1

Research and lower-TRL technology development

Stage 2

Prototype development and collaborative defence R&D

Stage 3

Industrialisation, production, and procurement readiness

Stage 4

Longer-term venture and accelerator ecosystem expansion

Community in Action

Where the Ecosystem Converges

The Hub is not a directory. It is an active operating environment. Startups, investors, defence primes, and institutional partners meet here, collaborate here, and build here.

Community Members
100 +
Countries represented
10 +
EU/NATO funding tracked
€ 100 + BILLION
Institutional Foundation

Built on Proven EU Project Infrastructure

The Institute of Entrepreneurship Development (iED), with over 20 years of proven experience, offers the European project infrastructure. JOIST provides the defence specialisation, physical facilities, and classified capability layer. Together they form a combination that neither offers alone.

European Projects Participated
100 +

iED has participated in 500+ EU projects, giving JOIST members access to a delivery base that strengthens consortium-building and proposal development across defence and dual-use programmes.

European Networks
10

iED participates in 48 pan-European networks including DIHNet, 28digital, and the European Network for Innovation, giving JOIST members structured access to digital innovation hubs, research institutions, and funding bodies across the continent.

iED's PARTNER ORGANISATIONS
1000 +

iED connects JOIST to 8,000+ partner organisations across 40 countries, expanding access to industrial partners, research institutions, innovation actors, and collaboration pathways relevant to defence and dual-use technology development.

Operational Environment

Where Institutions Convene

The Hub’s facilities host roundtables, working groups, and bilateral meetings for defence stakeholders, research institutions, and funding bodies operating across Southeast Europe.

Membership

Core Benefits

Members gain access to a layered value stack: from profile visibility and ecosystem introductions to infrastructure coordination, proposal development support, and a pathway to the Hub’s emerging digital defence marketplace.

  • Profile visibility on the Hub marketplace and defence-technology channels, increasing exposure across the European defence and dual-use ecosystem.
  • Early funding intelligence across EDF, EDIP, DIANA, SAFE, and Horizon Europe pathways.
  • Consortium-partner identification and cross-border market connections through structured ecosystem matchmaking.
  • Coordinated access to trusted meeting, lab, and testing environments for project development.
  • Introductions into the Hellenic defence ecosystem, including industry and institutional stakeholders.
  • Workshops, readiness assessments, innovation challenges, and demonstration opportunities that advance technology readiness and market preparation.
  • Mentoring on defence-market entry, dual-use positioning, and strategic fit.
  • Regular intelligence briefings covering active EU and NATO programme calls, market developments, and ecosystem updates.
Tailored partnership scope

Membership Tiers

Platinum

For Defence Primes & Institutions

Recommended for Primes
  • Participation in strategic advisory sessions to inform Hub priorities and direction.
  • Priority access to higher-trust project facilitation and sensitive collaboration workflows.
  • Priority support for MoU-driven testing and validation relationships.
  • Technology scouting visibility for institutional stakeholders.
  • Priority consortium support and cross-border market-entry assistance.
  • Closed strategic briefings, roundtables, and flagship showcase opportunities.
Enquire

Gold

For Scale-ups & Innovators

  • Defence readiness assessment and programme-fit support.
  • Proposal and consortium support across EDF, SAFE, DIANA, and Horizon pathways.
  • Go-to-market guidance, buyer mapping, and certification orientation.
  • Innovation challenge, demo-day, and exhibition visibility.
  • Prime-contractor, investor, and pilot-matchmaking support.
  • Access to Hub talent networks and defence-sector employer positioning.
Enquire

Silver

For SMEs & Research Centres

  • Facilitated use of Hub facilities for partner and client meetings.
  • Member-only sessions, networking events, and working groups.
  • Introductions to defence primes, investors, research centres, and domestic industry.
  • Funding-awareness support and discounted readiness services.
  • Directory inclusion and recognition across Hub communications.
Enquire

Startup

For Early-stage Startups

  • Guided orientation toward classified-readiness requirements and a structured pathway to higher tiers.
  • Access to open events, workshops, and networking sessions.
  • Early-stage funding awareness and defence-market-entry mentoring.
  • Access to investor, accelerator, and digital marketplace relationships.
  • Priority visibility and recognition as a startup member across Hub communication channels.
Enquire
Programmes

Key EU & NATO Funding

From research entry points to production-scale procurement, the Hub maps members to the right programme based on their stage of technology maturity.

Programme
Budget
Scope
Priority
Security Action for Europe (SAFE)
€150B
Production and procurement of defence systems across EU member states.
High
Horizon Europe (dual-use)
€95B
Research and technology development pipeline for lower-TRL entry points.
High
European Defence Fund (EDF)
€7.9B
Collaborative R&D for defence technologies and annual multi-country calls.
Urgent
EDIP 2025-2027
€1.5B
Joint procurement, co-production, and manufacturing ramp-up.
Urgent
DIANA / NATO Innovation Fund
€1B
Deep-tech dual-use innovation, accelerator access, and strategic exposure.
Medium
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Join the Hub

We are currently forming founding collaborations and onboarding early participants. Initial conversations are confidential.

Partnership Enquiries
General Contact
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