- Center to link Latvian developers with EU, NATO and US 6G programs
- NestAI eyes up to $1.1M over three years as strategic industry partner
- Latvia seeks to commercialize homegrown defense, dual-use innovations
Latvia has launched AlliedTechLabs, a permanent center where NATO allies and industry intend to field-test 5G, 6G, artificial intelligence and edge computing tools, with NestAI eyeing up to $1.1 million in support.
In a statement released Friday by LMT Group, Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs described the center as a way to help Latvia design and commercialize its own defense technologies rather than depend only on systems built abroad.
Who Is Backing the AlliedTechLabs Center?
Latvia’s Institute of Electronics and Computer Science will house the center as a dedicated unit. LMT Group, the defense and education ministries and the Riga City Council are backing it.
NestAI, maker of the NestOS battlefield operating system, signed a memorandum of understanding and plans to contribute up to $1.1 million over three years as a strategic industry partner. The company already works with European militaries, including Finland’s.
According to NestAI Founder and Executive Chairman Peter Sarlin, the company intends to use the center to connect its Latvian research and development hub with allied forces on NATO’s Eastern Flank.
How Will AlliedTechLabs Build on NATO’s DiBaX Experiments?
AlliedTechLabs grows out of NATO’s Digital Backbone eXperimentation, or DiBaX, which Latvia has hosted since 2022.
LMT Group President Juris Binde noted that the center turns DiBaX’s six-month collaborations into a permanent capability, with LMT supplying network and engineering support.
Trials are set to run on LMT’s commercial network, a dedicated military 5G testbed and city-based test sites. Work is expected to focus on integrated communications, edge computing, AI, and sensing and signal processing. The center also intends to advise governments on investment and standards decisions. Ukrainian partners are expected to help convert battlefield and civil resilience lessons into testing benchmarks for NATO and EU consideration.
How Does AlliedTechLabs Connect to US FutureG and 6G Efforts?
The center also plans to connect Latvian developers with EU, NATO and U.S. 6G programs.
Thomas Rondeau, the Pentagon’s FutureG principal director and a 2026 Wash100 Award winner, said initiatives like AlliedTechLabs help shift militaries away from closed, legacy network designs toward open, standards-based 5G and 6G systems. He added that close cooperation with Baltic and European allies speeds the delivery of secure commercial wireless capabilities to mission-critical settings.
In July, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration enlisted more than 20 partner governments in its Call to Action for 6G Leadership and Security. The initiative followed a December 2025 presidential memorandum designating 6G a national security priority.
