February 13, 2026
German defense startup Stark has opened its new development and research center in Ukraine, and will also build a production facility for its drones to adapt them even faster to the conditions of modern warfare, immediately testing them on the front line.
During the Munich Security Conference, German defense startup Stark announced the opening of its own R&D center in Ukraine. It is announced that it has an area of 2,000 square meters, where it will be able to accommodate more than 200 specialists.
The purpose of this center will be research and development, system integration and training, which will allow to accelerate the transition from the development stage to serial production. In addition, Stark plans to build its own production facilities in Ukraine. This is reported by the Defense Network .
Yes, Stark plans to integrate regional supply chains. All this should strengthen and increase industrial sustainability. The presence of production facilities and its own development and research center in Ukraine will allow it to adapt its products much faster to the ever-changing conditions of modern warfare.
It is not yet announced what products will be produced at the new production facilities in Ukraine in the future. However, Stark does not have a large selection of products, which are represented by the Virtus loitering munition, as well as the Vanta unmanned boat.
Although Virtus was first introduced only in September 2025, it is already being used on the front by the Ukrainian military. It has a maximum range of over 100 km, a cruising speed of 120 km/h, and a maximum speed of 250 km/h.
The total mass of Virtus is about 30 kg, of which 5 kg is for the warhead, which exists in several variants to engage different targets. It also has integrated artificial intelligence functions on board, thanks to which it can independently detect and identify targets.
Below is a video of the use of the Virtus loitering munition in Ukraine:
Flight duration up to 1.5 hours, flight altitude up to 2 km. Virtus is launched vertically without any launch devices, from any open area. It will probably be the main focus of Stark’s new enterprises in Ukraine.
As for the Vanta unmanned boat, it was also first introduced only in September 2025, and exists in two versions: Vanta 6 and Vanta 4, reflecting their lengths of 6 and 4 meters, respectively.
The following characteristics are declared for the larger version: a range of up to 910 nautical miles (1,685 km), a speed of over 45 knots (83 km/h), a modular payload of up to 200 kg. And for the smaller Vanta 4, the following characteristics are declared: a range of 780 nautical miles (1,444 km), an unspecified speed, but probably the same or higher, but the payload will be correspondingly smaller.
In addition to opening a center in Ukraine, Stark also opened a branch in Greece, and even earlier expanded into the UK and Sweden. In general, the German startup Stark is developing very quickly, because it was founded only in 2024, and two years later it has its branches and production facilities in many European countries.
It is worth recalling that just a few days ago, Stark received a contract for its Virtus loitering munitions from an unnamed NATO country. Interestingly, the contract was only signed in early February, and the first batches of drones are due to start arriving this month.
The integration of Ukraine with Western arms producers is an ongoing process and the combination of Ukrainian cleverness and Western ingenuity and money will guarantee an unbeatable partnership. The mafia state will never be able to compete.