STARK
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Defence technology |
| Founded | 2024 |
| Founders | Johannes Schaback, Florian Seibel |
Key people | Johannes Schaback (CTO & Co-founder) |
| Products | STARK OWE-V Virtus; Minerva mission control software; various UAVs & USVs |
Number of employees | ≈ 150 (2025) |
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]
History
STARK was established in 2024 by a group of technologists and entrepreneurs, including Johannes Schaback—formerly Chief Technology Officer of SumUp. The company was formed to address urgent operational demands highlighted by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[3]
In early 2025, STARK launched its flagship products, the OWE-V Virtus loitering munition and the Minerva mission control suite.[4] By mid-2025, the company opened a new production facility in Munich,[5] 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.[4][6]
In July 2025, the company announced it would open a 40,000 sq ft factory in Swindon, UK.[7]
Products
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.[8][9]
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. 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.[9][10]
References
- ^ Pfeifer, Sylvia; Nilsson, Patricia (2025-04-28). "Fully autonomous strike drones within technological reach, says German start-up". Financial Times. Retrieved 2025-06-30.
- ^ "DefenseTech: Die wichtigsten Startups aus Deutschland". deutsche-startups.de (in German). 2025-04-14. Retrieved 2025-06-30.
- ^ magazin, Caspar Schlenk, Jonas Rest, manager (2025-04-03). "(m+) Kamikazedrohnen-Hersteller Stark: Peter Thiel steckt Millionen in deutsches Start-up". www.manager-magazin.de (in German). Retrieved 2025-06-30.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b sam (2025-04-16). "Germany orders loitering munitions from Stark and Helsing -". Retrieved 2025-06-30.
- ^ "Neue Drohnen zum Schutz vor Russland: Das ist der Hoffnungsträger". FAZ.NET (in German). 2025-04-14. Retrieved 2025-06-30.
- ^ "Drohnen-Start-up Quantum Systems ist auf dem Weg zur Milliardenbewertung". FAZ.NET (in German). 2025-04-05. Retrieved 2025-06-30.
- ^ "Drone manufacturer Stark to begin production in Swindon". www.bbc.com. 2025-07-16. Retrieved 2025-08-06.
- ^ "Stark Drops 'Virtus': A Loitering Munition Fusing AI, VTOL, and Tactical Autonomy". 2025-04-16. Retrieved 2025-06-30.
- ^ a b "Autonome Waffensysteme: STARK baut neue Kampfdrohne Virtus - Wehrtechnik" (in German). 2025-06-06. Retrieved 2025-06-30.
- ^ "Drohnen für Europas Militär: Deutscher Aufsteiger vom Start-up zum Rüstungspartner". www.fnp.de (in German). 2025-05-19. Retrieved 2025-06-30.