Kelluu has advanced to Phase 2 of NATO’s Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (NATO DIANA). The program provides tailored support, access to NATO test centers, and direct engagement with end users and investors. First there were more than 2,600 submissions. From these, about 70 companies were selected to Phase One, and now only 15 move forward to Phase Two.
What’s new: Kelluu is not another quadcopter and not just a balloon. It is an autonomous airship, a multi sensor and software defined platform that stays airborne for more than 12 hours per mission. It carries modular payloads, operates below the cloud layer, and flies with a low acoustic and emissions footprint. The platform creates a quiet, persistent ISR layer that augments satellites and short endurance drones.
“Persistent, quiet, affordable, that’s the sweet spot,” said Janne Hietala, CEO of Kelluu.
“Phase 2 lets us prove Kelluu in NATO’s most demanding test environments and show how our autonomous airship platform strengthens ISR capabilities, from critical infrastructure protection to expeditionary operations.”
Kelluu’s current work includes navigation resilience trials with Finland’s National Land Survey, addressing GNSS interference. This risk area has been highlighted in 2025 by both national and international aviation authorities and supranational agencies.
At the moment Kelluu is participating in REPMUS25 in Portugal, one of NATO’s most challenging exercises, and will also take part in DiBax in Latvia, NATO’s largest Digital Backbone Experimentation, in October.
About DIANA
DIANA is the Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic, a NATO organisation with a mission to locate and accelerate dual-use innovation across the Alliance. DIANA works to find, accelerate, and promote adoption of technologies that will strengthen the Alliance no matter the threat. Learn more at www.diana.nato.int.
About Kelluu
Kelluu is Finnish technology company that operates the world’s largest fleet of autonomous airships, delivering persistent, silent and low cost aerial intelligence for security and environmental monitoring.