Texas Secretary of State, Nordic Consuls General and Defense-Tech Investors to Headline DRON8 Summit at UT Austin During Austin Tech Week | UAS News US

2026-10-28 · 08:30:00 · Austin

Etter-Harbin Alumni Center

2110 San Jacinto Blvd, Austin, TX 78712

Held at UT Austin during Austin Tech Week, DRON8 Summit gathers over 200 leaders in drones, robotics, artificial intelligence, and dual-use technology for curated keynotes, demos, and one-to-one meetings.

DRON8 Summit 2026 is a curated one-day gathering on drones, robotics, artificial intelligence and dual-use technology held during Austin Tech Week. The event brings together over 200 leaders, including government officials, defense-tech investors, operators, and researchers for scheduled one-to-one meetings, keynotes, and live showcases. The program focuses on capital, identity and trust, procurement, workforce, and allied cooperation.

Founder brief

Who should attend

Founders building unmanned aerial systems, robotics, autonomous platforms, and dual-use defense software will gain direct access to capital and public-sector buyers. The content directly addresses those navigating procurement pathways, scaling advanced manufacturing across allied nations, and validating operational reliability for critical security missions.

What happens

Proceedings begin at 08:30 with registration and access to the showcase gallery, followed by an official opening at 09:15. The day spans keynotes, a live Ukraine field address, investor panels, fireside chats on manufacturing, and live operational demonstrations, finishing with evening networking in the gallery at 16:30.

Who's in the room

Delegates include more than 200 defense-tech investors, academic researchers, and public officials. Participants feature Swedish Consul General Anna Hammarlund Blixt, Dr. Michael W. Mosser from UT Austin, alongside industry executives from CesiumAstro, Swarmer, BidWell, Q-Branch, and the National Security Innovation Council.

How to prepare

Review the day's schedule of live showcases and targeted meetings in advance. Because the summit features scheduled one-to-one sessions, bring concise overviews of your system's operational readiness, authentication architecture, and dual-use commercial applications to speak fluently with defense investors and allied procurement representatives.

Organizer: HR4U Solutions

Register

At a glance

Theme
Beyond Autonomy: Drones, Robotics & AI Shaping Tomorrow's Security and Economy
Attendance
200+ leaders in drones, autonomy, AI and dual-use technology
Sectors
Deeptech, Aerospace defense, Ai ml

Agenda

  1. 08:30 · Registration and Demo Gallery — Registration and hands-on time in the Showcase Gallery.
  2. 09:15 · Welcome and Opening — Texas welcome and program opening by Dr. Michael W. Mosser and Secretary Robert S. Howden.
  3. From the Moon to the Mission — Opening keynote on what autonomy has already proven, from lunar-landing guidance to systems flying today.
  4. Autonomy Under Fire — A live address from Ukraine on how research becomes an operational system.
  5. Investors' Playbook: Capital, Partnership and the Path to Scale — Discussion on capital, partnership and the path to scale.
  6. Who Is Flying That? — Security keynote on identity, trust and authentication for unmanned systems.
  7. Beyond the Demo: What It Takes to Become Mission-Ready — Panel discussion on becoming mission-ready.
  8. The Human Systems Behind Autonomy — Unscripted fireside chat on human systems and autonomy.
  9. Landing in Texas — Unscripted fireside chat on scaling advanced manufacturing across the United States and allied nations.
  10. Your Worst-Case Scenario Is Their Tuesday — Northern European lessons in resilience and public-private cooperation.
  11. Live showcases and Demo Gallery — Operational systems shown to buyers, government and investors with talks and demos.
  12. 16:30 · Evening networking — Networking session in the Demo Gallery.

Speakers, judges and hosts

  • Andrea Hrusovska — Co-founder and Curator, HR4U Solutions (Host)
  • Joseph Kopser — President, Grayline Group (Host)
  • Jozef Hrusovsky — Co-founder and Curator, HR4U Solutions (Host)
  • Michael W. Mosser — Director of the Center for European Studies, The University of Texas at Austin (Host)
  • Jessica Steinhoff — Representative, BidWell (Panelist)
  • Marcos Cervantes — Representative, Q-Branch (Panelist)
  • Matthew Strebe (Panelist)
  • Scott Firsing — Ph.D., CesiumAstro (Panelist)
  • Alex Fink — President and U.S. CEO, Swarmer (Speaker)
  • Anna Hammarlund Blixt — Consul General, Consulate General of Sweden in Houston (Speaker)
  • Drew Scheberle — Representative, National Security Innovation Council (Speaker)
  • Jonathan Josephson — Representative, Quantum Interface (Speaker)
  • Larry Covert — Fund Manager, Oxcart Ventures (Speaker)
  • Ligeia Zeruto — Speaker, Beyond Identity (Speaker)
  • Maruthi Akella — Cockrell Family Endowed Chair in Aerospace Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin (Speaker)
  • Mike Sherbakov — Fund Manager, The Veteran Fund (Speaker)
  • Robert S. Howden — Texas Secretary of State, State of Texas (Speaker)
  • Rob Mark — Forge Lead, Mach Industries (Speaker)
  • Sergiy Gnatyuk — Professor, National Aviation University Kyiv (Speaker)
  • Stefan Lindström — Consul General, Consulate General of Finland in Houston (Speaker)
  • Ty Audronis — Representative, Tempest Droneworx (Speaker)

Sponsors and partners

  • Center for European Studies at The University of Texas at Austin
  • Clements Center for National Security
  • HR4U Solutions
  • BRIGHTPICK
  • Tempest DRONEWORKS
  • SWARMER
  • Mach Industries
  • Q-Branch
  • The Veterans Fund
  • Oxcart Ventures
  • Quantum Interface

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