UK becomes first foreign partner to access Ukraine's Avengers Labs AI platform
The United Kingdom has become the first international partner whose defence companies will gain access to Ukraine's Avengers Labs artificial intelligence platform. Up to 12 British defence firms are expected to join the programme, training AI models for drone swarms and autonomous systems. The agreement was signed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer's successor, Andy Burnham, and forms part of the 100-year UK-Ukraine partnership.
Key points
- The UK is the first international partner whose defence companies will access the Avengers Labs platform
- Up to 12 British defence companies are planned to take part in the programme
- The agreement was signed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham
- Participants will test and train AI models inside the secure Avengers Labs environment, with no direct access to or ability to download the dataset
- The platform is built on an annotated dataset of more than 5 million frames, mostly sourced from drones via the DELTA combat system
- Selection of British firms will be carried out competitively by the UK Ministry of Defence, coordinated by the Rapid AI Delivery Task Force (RAID)
- More than 30 Ukrainian defence companies already train models on Avengers Labs, and three products built with the platform are in use on the battlefield
Why it matters
This is the first time Ukraine has opened a defence-oriented AI platform to international allies, potentially setting a template for further expansion. The partnership pairs British defence expertise with a uniquely combat-proven dataset, accelerating work on autonomous drone swarms capable of operating under limited connectivity or without global navigation signals. It also deepens the long-term UK-Ukraine defence and technology partnership.
What happened
The United Kingdom has become the first international partner whose defence companies will gain access to Ukraine's Avengers Labs AI platform. Under the agreement, signed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham, up to 12 British defence firms will train AI models inside the secure Avengers Labs environment, working with an annotated dataset of more than 5 million frames drawn largely from drones via the DELTA combat system. Companies will not be able to download the dataset directly. Selection is being run competitively by the UK Ministry of Defence through the Rapid AI Delivery Task Force (RAID), and final access depends on Ukrainian export-control procedures. The first joint British-Ukrainian competition will focus on models that allow unmanned systems to operate effectively with limited operator connectivity or global navigation coverage. The cooperation is framed as part of the 100-year UK-Ukraine partnership.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Both Ukrainian sources (a media outlet and a news agency) frame the deal as a technological success for Ukraine and a milestone in the strategic partnership with the UK. They emphasise the uniqueness of the combat dataset built up by Ukrainian forces, the role of the Ukrainian side in collecting it, and the quantitative gains AI brings to battlefield analysis. The personal involvement of President Zelenskyy in signing the agreement gives the event a high political profile.
Background
Avengers Labs is built on an annotated dataset of more than 5 million frames, most of it sourced from unmanned systems via the DELTA combat system, and the dataset is updated regularly. Data is transferred in anonymised form and with a delay to reduce risk to military personnel, and participating companies do not have direct access to it but train their models inside the secure platform environment. More than 30 Ukrainian defence companies already train models on the platform, and three products developed with it are already in use on the battlefield. British companies will only gain access after Ukraine completes the required export-control procedures.