Jonas Rydin has been appointed as an advisor in the Ukrainian defense accelerator Defence Builder. The announcement comes shortly after a delegation from the Swedish defense industry, organized by SOFF, visited Kyiv.

Over the past three years, Rydin has led the aid initiative Quartermaster for Ukraine, which has delivered materials worth approximately 20 million dollars to the Ukrainian armed forces. According to a post from Defence Builder, he will assist the accelerator's team with business plans, corporate models, and investment strategies. The focus is on technology areas such as unmanned systems, electronic warfare, and counter-drone operations.

“It is with great humility that I take on this assignment. To contribute, but also to learn from Ukraine's defense industry, I see as crucial for building up our own,” says Jonas Rydin in a post on LinkedIn.

Rydin has several previous engagements in the Swedish defense industry. In June, he became the chairman of the board at SnigelDesign, where he became a co-owner through his holding company Cajory Defence AB. Cajory also has ownership interests in companies such as W5 Solutions, 4C Strategies, and Clavister.

Defence Builder is a government-supported innovation environment within Ukraine's defense sector and collaborates with, among others, the national defense cluster Brave1. In the spring, Rydin participated in a delegation from the Swedish defense industry association SOFF that visited Kyiv, where representatives from Saab, Scania, BAE Systems, Volvo Defence, and W5 Solutions were present.