RUSI Military Technology Conference 2026

Registration will take place between 09:00 and 09:30. Please take your seat at least 5 minutes before the start of the conference.

The core challenge in much of British and European targeting capability development is how to orchestrate the integration of systems, workflows, and data flows to enable cohesive operations. This session will examine the UK’s evolving targeting architectures and situate it against divergent allied approaches to facilitating large-scale digitalised targeting, asking where British choices align with partners, where they diverge, and what that means for interoperability, lock-in, and industry collaboration.

Speakers

• Captain Bryan McCavour, Deputy Head of the Information Warfare, Royal Navy
• Wing Commander Jason Murray, Deputy Head of Joint Targeting and Effects, NATO SHAPE

Moderator: Noah Sylvia, Research Fellow, C4ISR and Emerging Tech, RUSI 

Compute has emerged in recent conflicts as both a decisive enabler and a vulnerable target, reshaping assumptions about where processing power should sit and how it should be defended. This session will explore how compute architectures shape what a military can do across echelons and classifications, and will interrogate the UK's choices against the competing demands of resilience, sovereignty, and interoperability with allies.

Speakers

• Dr Andrii Davydiuk, Deputy Head of Division, State Cyber Protection Center, State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine
• Jamie Grive, Chief Technology Officer, SiXworks  
• James Russell, Lead Technical Architect for Cloud, UK Ministry of Defence

Moderator: Joseph Jarnecki, Senior Research Fellow, Cyber & Tech, RUSI 

This session will showcase a practical example of how interoperability can be embedded from the earliest stages of capability development rather than retrofitted after the fact.

Speakers

• Colonel Nat Haden, Programme Director, Land Intelligence and Targeting Programme
• Lieutenant Colonel Andy Dugdale, Project Manager, ZODIAC
• Dr David Brown, Principal Consultant, Roke

Moderator: Robert Tollast, Research Fellow, Land Warfare, RUSI

Space underpins an ever-widening range of military functions, from PNT and communications to ISR, yet the assets and services the UK depends on sit across a complex mix of sovereign, allied, and commercial providers. This session will assess the state of UK space capabilities today and probe the harder strategic choices ahead: what must be held sovereign, what can be shared with allies, and how to manage commercial dependence.

Speakers

• Brigadier Neil Lakin, Head Space Capability, UK Space Command
• Mark Bacon, Deputy Director Strategy, UK Space Agency
• Barney Gray, Director for UK Government, Viasat

Moderator: Matthew Savill, Director of Military Sciences, RUSI

The keys to successful development, deployment and sustainment of technologies in defence are rarely technical, hinging instead upon non-technical enablers across the capability lifecycle. This session will focus on these critical yet underappreciated enablers, asking whether the UK defence sector has the skills and expertise, contracting and regulatory frameworks, and institutional culture to deliver the Integrated Force.

Speakers

• To be announced

Moderator: Prerana Joshi, Research Fellow, Cyber & Tech, RUSI  

Keynote Speaker: 

• Dan Rodenhurst, Chief Digital Information Officer, UK Ministry of Defence