Frankenburg Technologies
Frankenburg Technologies was founded in 2024 in Tallinn, Estonia by serial deep-tech entrepreneurs Taavi Madiberk (co-founder of Skeleton Technologies) and Marko Virkebau. The company is led by CEO Kusti Salm, former Permanent Secretary of Estonia's Ministry of Defence, and CTO Andreas Bappert, who spent 30+ years in air defence technology at Diehl Defence leading medium and long range systems including IRIS-T. Frankenburg's flagship Mark I is the world's smallest guided missile: approximately 65 cm long, powered by solid rocket propellant, autonomously guided, reaching near Mach 1, with a 2 km range and an estimated unit cost of approximately $50,000, roughly one-tenth the price of a Stinger missile. The company went from concept to live firing in 13 months and achieved its first full kill-chain hard-kill intercept against a fast-moving aerial target at Ādaži NATO base in Latvia in December 2025. Frankenburg operates across eight countries including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Germany, the UK, Denmark, Poland, and Ukraine. Strategic partnerships include Babcock (maritime counter-drone launcher), BAE Systems (warhead development), and Poland's PGZ Group (integration and local manufacturing of up to 10,000 units/year). The company is establishing two EU mass-production sites targeting 100+ missiles per day per facility.
This is how we approached it and reached the numbers
Operations across 8 countries including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Germany, UK, Denmark, Poland, and Ukraine. MoUs with Babcock (UK), BAE Systems (UK), and PGZ (Poland). Selected for Estonia's Defence Industry Park. Establishing UK headquarters with 50+ jobs planned. Pilot deal with Latvian Ministry of Defence. Remarkable international footprint for a company founded in 2024. Not higher because most partnerships are MoUs rather than executed contracts, and revenue-generating operations are still pre-scale.
Pre-revenue in any meaningful commercial sense. Pilot deal with Latvia signed. Mark I deliveries planned to begin in 2026. Estonia selected Frankenburg as one of four companies for its Defence Industry Park. No production-scale revenue yet. The €400M valuation is based on strategic potential, not current commercial performance.
World's smallest guided missile developed from concept to live-fire intercept in 13 months. Full kill-chain hard-kill demonstrated at NATO base in December 2025. Solid rocket propellant, autonomous guidance, modular design using commercially available components. CTO with 30+ years at Diehl Defence leading IRIS-T and similar programs. Not 100 because the Mark I uses off-the-shelf components by design (which is the strategic point) and the system has not yet been battle-tested at scale.
B2B/B2G defense manufacturing with sovereign production model designed for local manufacturing close to the customer. Target unit cost of $50,000 per missile at volume. Two EU production sites planned at 100+ missiles/day each. Clear demand signal from European governments and NATO allies. Not higher because the manufacturing infrastructure does not yet exist at scale, unit economics are projections, and defense procurement cycles are long and unpredictable.
Frankenburg Technologies is less than two years old and already has MoUs with Babcock and BAE Systems, a pilot deal with the Latvian Ministry of Defence, a partnership with Poland's PGZ Group for local manufacturing of 10,000 units per year, and a €400M valuation. The company was founded in Tallinn in 2024 by Taavi Madiberk (co-founder of Skeleton Technologies) and Marko Virkebau, and is led by CEO Kusti Salm, who was the highest-ranking civil servant in Estonia's Ministry of Defence until 2024. The CTO, Andreas Bappert, led medium and long range air defence systems at Diehl Defence for 30 years, including programs like IRIS-T. The Mark I missile went from concept to live-fire hard-kill intercept at a NATO base in 13 months. It is 65 cm long, costs roughly one-tenth of a Stinger, and is designed to be manufactured at 100+ units per day. That combination of team pedigree, development speed, strategic partnerships, and the structural urgency of European counter-drone demand makes Frankenburg the most consequential defence startup to emerge from the Baltics. The company raised €40M total including a €30M Series A led by Plural (Taavet Hinrikus's fund) and SmartCap in February 2026. It is pre-revenue and pre-production, which is the nature of building missile systems in under two years.