Defence Trailblazer at ADSTAR 2026: impact and legacy
Defence Trailblazer showcases its researchers, ventures and projects at an Adelaide defence summit, citing over $140 million in industry support, as it prepares to hand over to AUSDII.
Startup · $1.5m raised
Adelaide, SA
Every investor coverage indicates participated in a round Silentium Defence raised.
| Investor | Rounds | Invested |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Government | Grant | $1,460,000 |
| Australian Space Agency | Grant | - |
| the federal government | Grant | - |
Companies Silentium Defence acquired or merged with, per published coverage. Buying a company is not investing in one: nothing here counts in the deals column.
| Name | Role | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| Dr James Palmer | Global Chief Executive Officer | Defence Connect, The Mandarin, @AuManufacturing (Wed 14 Oct 2020), Startup Daily, @AuManufacturing (Wed 17 Jun 2020) |
| Simon Palumbo | Founder | Defence Connect, @AuManufacturing |
Stories naming Silentium Defence. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
Defence Trailblazer showcases its researchers, ventures and projects at an Adelaide defence summit, citing over $140 million in industry support, as it prepares to hand over to AUSDII.
Passive radar maker Silentium Defence has passed 100 staff and hired Matthew Ratnesar as US expansion CEO and Sam Macmillan as CFO, while co-founder Simon Palumbo returns to drive allied-market growth from South Australia.
Federal defence contracts worth more than $100 million include $1.8 million for University of South Australia laser research, $7.4 million for Silentium Defence radar, and $183,022 for Varley Rafael Australia's missile kit production.
Silentium Defence wins a $3.2m Defence contract for its passive space radar, plus a $1.46m Space Agency award for an observatory; Prism Systems receives a $925,000 grant for Navy-related work.
Australian government grants totalling $11 million go to space sector startups and universities, including a near-$4 million CubeSat mission, as part of a wider plan to triple the sector's value by 2030.
Ten Australian space projects, from universities and startups, share eleven million dollars in Australian government grants for work including CubeSats, spacesuits and astronaut training simulations.
Also @AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·@AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing