Ground drone maker Tencore raises $3.7 million in one of the largest known investments in Ukraine defense tech

A U.S.-Ukrainian investment group, MITS Capital, has invested $3.74 million in Tencore, a Ukrainian company that manufactures military robots deployed on the front lines against Russia, the companies announced in a press release on July 11.
The deal, announced at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome, represents one of the largest publicly disclosed investments in Ukrainian defense technology since Russia's full-scale invasion began in 2022.
International investment in Ukrainian defense startups jumped fourfold in 2024, reaching $40 million compared to nearly zero in the previous two years.
Tencore produces the TerMIT unmanned ground vehicle, which meets NATO standards and is already being used in combat against Russian forces.
The robots can transport supplies, evacuate wounded soldiers, clear mines, and provide fire support. The company has built over 800 units and aims to reach 2,000 by year-end.
The new funding will help Tencore expand both research and manufacturing capabilities, the company said.
"Our goal is to get Russia out of Ukraine and Ukraine into NATO's defense supply chain," said Perry Boyle, CEO and Founding Partner at MITS Capital.
According to Boyle, the deal marks the first time a U.S. investor has used Ukraine's new legal framework to back a defense company.
MITS Capital utilized Ukraine's special Diia.City legal framework for tech companies to invest directly in Tencore's Ukrainian entity.
"This creates a clear legal path for international investors to deploy capital directly into Ukrainian entities without workarounds," said Denys Gurak, MITS Capital's chief investment officer.
The framework allows investors to use international arbitration and foreign law in contracts, making Ukrainian investments as secure as those in Delaware corporations, according to Gurak.
MITS Capital, founded last year, focuses exclusively on Ukrainian defense startups. The firm operates an accelerator program and has invested in 11 companies so far.
