The National Institute of Cybersecurity of Spain (INCIBE) has been proposed to host a cybersecurity and cyber defense startups accelerator based in León for the NATO. This joint initiative, agreed upon by the State Secretariat for Defense and the State Secretariat for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence, aims to create synergies between policies supporting the cybersecurity and cyber defense industry. The goal is to combine efforts in supporting digital entrepreneurship and promoting dual-use cybersecurity technologies and solutions applicable in both civilian and military contexts.
The project consists of an innovative companies accelerator based at INCIBE (León) and three demonstration centers that will also be located in the capital of León, Madrid, the Basque Country, and Málaga. These centers will be accredited to certify the cybersecurity of innovative products, solutions, and services by the new companies that NATO aims to promote in the coming years.
In addition, thanks to the RETECH cybersecurity initiative, the Autonomous Communities of Castilla y León, Euskadi, Andalucía, and Madrid will strengthen their cybersecurity entrepreneurship strategy linked to this project. The NATO accelerator call is organized through the DIANA (Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic) project, which seeks to enhance transatlantic cooperation in critical technologies and foster collaboration with private sector entities, academia, and other non-governmental organizations.
In summary, INCIBE has been selected as the sole cybersecurity startups accelerator within the Atlantic Alliance in Spain, and its work will contribute to strengthening cybersecurity and cyber defense internationally.