Defence Holdings unveils 'Meridian' capability acceleration programme

(Alliance News) - Defence Holdings PLC on Thursday announced details of its new 'Meridian' capability acceleration programme, and launched a dedicated digital platform on it.

The London-based defence technology group said Meridian forms part of its strategy to identify, support and accelerate emerging defence and dual-use technologies that address operational requirements across defence, national security and resilience markets.

Defence Holdings said that demand for emerging technologies across AI, autonomous systems, critical infrastructure resilience and other areas is increasing due to the "evolving nature of modern conflict".

However, it said many "promising technologies" lack sufficient proximity to customer requirements, access to appropriate capital sources and the necessary operational infrastructure to support commercial and operational deployment.

The Meridian programme aims to unite "customer access, capital support and operational infrastructure within a single framework," to help address these issues.

Defence Holdings said it plans to work with a limited number of carefully selected participants, with Meridian focusing on "long-term capability development rather than cohort scale."

"We look forward to working with the first companies entering Meridian and continuing to expand the ecosystem around the programme as we support the development of emerging sovereign capability," commented Chief Executive Officer Andrew Roughan.

The company noted its partnerships, both announced in June, with Intelligence Management Support Services Ltd and Austin, Texas-based cloud technology major Oracle Corp.

Oracle will be Meridian's hyperscale cloud partner and IMSL will support the programme through procurement framework access, accredited operating environments, bid support and specialist operational expertise, Defence Holdings noted. Additionally, it expects Oracle Defence Ecosystem members to have an accelerated pathway to the Meridian programme.

Defence Holdings also announced the launch of the meridianbydefenceplc.com digital platform, which "serves as the primary point of engagement for founders, partners and stakeholders".

"The commencement of the programme represents a further milestone in the execution of the Defence Holdings Playbook and the company's strategy of supporting the development and deployment of emerging sovereign capability," Defence Holdings said.

Shares in Defence Holdings were down 5.9% at 1.60 pence on Thursday in London.

By Emma Curzon, Alliance News reporter

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