| STARK | |
| Company type | Private |
| Industry | Defence |
| Founded | 2024 |
| Founders |
|
| Headquarters | Berlin, Germany |
Key people | Johannes Schaback (CTO), Uwe Horstmann (CEO) |
| Products | STARK OWE-V Virtus; Minerva mission control software; various UAVs & USVs |
Number of employees | ≈ 150 (2025) |
| Website | stark-defence |
STARK is a European defence technology company specialised in unmanned systems across multiple domains. The company sells loitering munitions to the German Bundeswehr and NATO states. [1] [2]
STARK was established in 2024 by a group of technologists and entrepreneurs, including Johannes Schaback—formerly Chief Technology Officer of SumUp and Uwe Horstmann. [3] The company was formed to address urgent operational demands highlighted by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. [4]
In early 2025, STARK launched its flagship products, the OWE-V Virtus loitering munition and the Minerva mission control suite. [5] By mid-2025, the company opened a new production facility in Munich, [6] and later that year the German Ministry of Defence reportedly placed an order for extended testing and trials of the OWE-V Virtus with the Bundeswehr. [5] [7]
In July 2025, the company announced it would open a 40,000 sq ft factory in Swindon, UK. [8] The following month, the company raised $62 million in a new funding round led by Sequoia Capital, valuing the company at $500 million. [9] [10]
In 2025, STARK reportedly conducted a reconnaissance and precision strike operation in Ukraine using their respective platforms in a coordinated mission. [11]
In the same year, the company was reported to have secured a €300 million contract with the German Bundeswehr for the delivery of loitering munitions and supporting systems. [12]
STARK’s core product is the OWE-V Virtus, an electrically powered VTOL loitering munition capable of cruising at 120 km/h, diving at up to 250 km/h, carrying a 5 kg warhead, and operating for 60 minutes. It can be launched from static or mobile platforms without additional infrastructure, and within six months of its introduction was deployed in Ukraine against a range of ground and strategic targets. [13] [14]
The company’s Minerva software suite enables precision-strike coordination in GNSS-denied or data-link-degraded environments, integrates with existing battle management systems, and orchestrates temporally and spatially synchronized strike swarms.
STARK’s maritime systems include the Vanta-4 and Vanta-6 unmanned surface vessels, designed for reconnaissance and strike missions in open-water environments. [15]
In addition, STARK offers a line of custom UAVs and USVs for reconnaissance, surveillance, and precision engagements, along with proprietary command-and-control interfaces and datalinks. [14] [16]
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