How has Estonia, a country of just 1.5 million people, blessed with few natural resources, developed a flourishing defense technology sector? For this NATO and EU member, and vibrant democracy, necessity is the mother of invention. Estonia, where the prime minister is often just an email away, has often been praised for its pioneering efforts in digital “E-government.” Less well-known may be the large bets Estonia’s public and commercial sectors have placed on developing a robust innovation ecosystem specializing in AI and cyber. Joel Burke, a researcher focused on AI and technology policy, joins us to discuss Estonia’s collaborative approach to integrating government and private resources, personnel, and technologies to support national defense.

Book website: Rebooting a NationReference to KAPO's report: https://news.err.ee/1609309593/internal-security-service-publishes-2023-2024-annual-reviewTomas' study on Defence AI in Estonia: https://defenseai.eu/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/daio_study2320_caught_between_today_and_tomorrow_tomas_jermalivicius.pdfE-Estonia briefing center (as the best place for folks to contact to start a collaboration with the Estonian defence-tech ecosystem): https://e-estonia.com/e-estonia-briefing-centre-services/about-us/E-governance Academy: https://ega.ee/Video Testimonies: https://exhibits.stanford.edu/baltic-video/feature/no-boundaries-the-digital-nomads-of-estonia-collection