14. dets 2025
From battery waste to defence innovation: early tests validate a new approach to thermal signature reduction
Jälle Technologies has won first place at DefHack: Resilience Edition, a defence-focused innovation hackathon organised by the Ministry of Defence of Estonia, Estonian Business School, and Beamline Accelerator, held on 12–14 December.
Jälle joined DefHack as a deeptech startup exploring practical and scalable applications of advanced materials in the defence sector. During the hackathon, the team focused on a critical operational challenge: thermal signature reduction.
From circular materials to defence resilience
Jälle’s technology is based on upcycling graphite waste from lithium-ion battery recycling into high-performance graphene-based materials. At DefHack, this material was applied as a functional coating on textile substrates, targeting reduced infrared detectability.
Over the course of the hackathon, the team conducted initial laboratory-scale tests combining textiles with Jälle’s graphene-based coating. The early results showed measurable and promising effects, validating the concept and clearly justifying further development, testing, and partner-led validation.
Strengthening resilience through local materials
The jury recognised Jälle’s solution for its practical relevance, dual-use potential, and alignment with defence resilience priorities. Beyond performance, the approach addresses a broader strategic challenge: reducing dependence on imported materials by producing advanced functional materials from locally sourced battery waste.
This combination of material performance, circularity, and supply-chain security positions Jälle’s solution as a strong candidate for further collaboration with defence stakeholders.
Next steps
Following DefHack, Jälle Technologies will begin discussions with relevant defence, industry, and research partners to continue testing, refine material formulations, and explore real-world use cases and commercial pathways.
“DefHack gave us a focused environment to test how our materials could perform in a defence-relevant context,” said Erki Ani, CEO of Jälle Technologies. “The results were encouraging and showed clear potential to move forward with partners who understand operational needs.”
Jälle Technologies thanks the organisers, mentors, and participating teams for an intensive and high-quality innovation process that demonstrated how science-based startups can contribute to national and European resilience.