The three nominees in the Exporter of the Year category of the Entrepreneurship Award are very different – an established big player, a rapidly rising star, and a company whose real rise may be starting in the coming months. In Estonia, they all have a rather small market share.
DefSecintel Solutions, which operates in the defence industry, has also been nominated in the Innovator of the Year category. It was established when its CEO, Jaanus Tamm, left a company that chose another direction instead of defence and security. Back then, the field was not so hot – there was no war in Europe. However, the technology was advanced and a lot could already be done with artificial intelligence. Tamm found that much could be done in the field of defence and security in this light.
“I knew several border guard leaders and experts, so I went and asked them what they needed,” Tamm recalls. “They said they needed an autonomous long-range surveillance system.” A system that doesn’t need cables or put people at risk. The system could be integrated with drones. So Tamm sat down with the engineers and they drew the first prototype.
When their first product was finished, they realised even more how much their product was needed. There was no such solution anywhere else at the time, and even today, they only have few direct competitors.

Prime Minister Kristen Michal getting acquainted with Defsecintel Solutions solutions. Photo: Priit Simson/Delfi Meedia
Estonian technology makes soldiers smarter
“We automate surveillance for the good guys that stand for democracy and security,” says Tamm. Since then, they have launched two more products in recent years to further help border guards and soldiers with their smartness. They also released their control software, enriched with AI, which is at the heart of all Defsecintel hardware systems. Millions of euros have been invested in the company.
“We have established a factory and a maintenance unit in Ukraine,” says Jaanus. “We also have an office and a garage there.” The main export turnover also comes from Ukraine.
Product development takes place in Estonia, but the capacity to improve them also exists in the country at war. Jaanus Tamm likes to say that they put together the information gathered from European and Estonian border guards and the Ukrainian war experience. The company participates in European research and capacity building programmes.
“Together, we are creating new capacities for Europe,” Tamm points out. “These are long projects, lasting many years, where the amount of development is significant. We have ten people who only deal with these long-term projects.”
These partnerships allow DefSecintel Solutions to be constantly on the same wavelength as the big players, and create new supply chains and relationships.
“There is interest in the entire European Union, but also outside,” says Tamm. “Our equipment is sought after by border guards and the defence sector, but our anti-drone systems, for example, are also in demand for ensuring security at events attracting big crowds, and airports. This is the case in Germany as well as in border countries in Eastern Europe.” The company’s goal is to achieve an export turnover of €100 million. Whilst armoured vehicles can be sold for hundreds of millions of euros at home, Estonia only needs a couple of million euros worth of their product.

Bikeep manager Kristjan Lind expects a breakthrough in the US market. Photo: Rauno Volmar/Delfi Meedia
Smart parking provider waiting for results of major procurements
Bikeep, a provider of smart bike parking technology, is waiting for the results of two major procurements that could give a massive boost to the whole sector. At the same time, 2024 has not been an easy year for them.
Kristjan Lind, the company’s founder and CEO, starts by saying that last year was a very good year for them, but they just have to survive this one and then move on with new momentum.
“The price of money has become expensive,” says Lind. “We do business through partners and resellers. People used to be more daring in jumping into projects, but now we get feedback that everything seems to be fine, but just in case, we’re not going to make a decision now. They sit around with money in their accounts.” Their clients are smart city integrators or bicycle park operators, and Bikeep is another product for their portfolios.
Our smart parking providers are the most successful in English-speaking countries, such as the US, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the UK. The network is also developing in Belgrade, Serbia, and Scandinavia. Estonia’s share fluctuates between 5 and 9 percent.
Kristjan Lind is delighted that they’ve managed to climb so high among the big players with a turnover of almost two million euros. They want to set an example and show what kind of export products a small country like Estonia needs.
“Our ability to communicate with partners across teams and cooperate with them is the reason we’re more successful in English-speaking countries,” says Lind. “We also communicate with cities when we communicate with them.”
Procurement victory is vital
The Estonians are not the only ones on the niche market, but are one of the biggest among small players. The really big ones haven’t entered the game yet, but there are signs that they’re becoming interested. The same once happened on the electric scooter market. The results of two extremely important procurements on the US market will be revealed soon. New York and Washington DC are looking to buy their first smart parking facilities and Bikeep is taking part in the procurements.
“We’re waiting for the results. Small players grow big through procurements like this. The products of winners move so far ahead of the others that for many, development is no longer worth it. This has an immense impact.” At first, the cities will procure a smaller number of parking facilities, but their decision says what kind of solution they will choose for the city.
Even the initial quantity would mean a 3 to 5 times increase in turnover in both cases, but the wave that comes after it is what’s important to the Estonian company. “In the US, it’s often the case that a big city organises a procurement and others can join it,” says Lind. “The winner is announced and then the others can hop on without a procurement.”
Whilst officials in London and Paris are a little wary of new solutions, the direction of US cities will be a good argument for them in Europe. When smart parking facilities are a feature of the urban landscape there, then why shouldn’t they exist in European metropolises as well?

Ats Albre, the CEO of Nortal Estonia, receiving Nortal’s “Most Competitive Large Company” title. Photo: Erlend Staub
Nortal had a year of intensive expansion
One of the success stories of the Estonian IT sector, Nortal, which earns 90% of its revenues from exports, can be very happy with how 2023 went. Ats Albre, the CEO of Nortal Estonia, says it was a landmark year – the company expanded into the UK and accelerated growth in both Canada and Saudi Arabia. New development centres were opened in Mexico and Egypt.
“In 2023, we invested heavily in value propositions in the areas of digital state and defence, which we intend to continue in the coming year,” says Albre. “Our goal is to continue implementing high-impact projects that bring significant innovation.”
Despite the global economic situation, Albre believes that cybersecurity, data and artificial intelligence remain important. This is why they continue to invest in new technologies and innovation, including generative artificial intelligence.
“We also expanded our involvement in the world’s most ambitious cognitive city project in the Middle East, providing solutions that create a unique urban experience for future residents and tourists,” Albre points out.
In Saudi Arabia, they supported the work of the local statistical office by helping to publish the results of the 2022 census. In Oman, Nortal perfected solutions for analysing data and tax information for the tax authority and developed a new business platform. Its goal is to create one of the world’s best business ecosystems, which will make the establishment of companies and management of business activities in Oman smooth and easy for foreign investors.
Significant transaction in the UK
In North America, Nortal expanded its presence by securing the position of strategic digital state partner (GovTech) with three Canadian provincial governments. In doing so, they brought the success story of e-Estonia to foreign markets.
“We also developed a global platform based on artificial intelligence for a leading solar energy solutions company, and created a new e-commerce platform for a US energy company serving nearly 10 million customers,” says Albre. Speaking of new markets, they are expanding to Austria this summer, where they see significant potential for providing digitisation services to the public sector.
Their latest news is that they acquired 3DOT Solutions, a cyber security company in the UK, which is a certified partner of the UK defence forces and intelligence services. “This transaction strengthens our position in the UK and gives us important extra competence in cybersecurity as a field of defence, which we can use to expand our service offering in Europe, the US and the Gulf countries.”
GOOD TO KNOW
Entrepreneurship Award 2024
- The best Estonian companies are recognised by the Estonian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Estonian Employers Confederation and the Estonian Business and Innovation Agency.
- The awards gala where the winners of the Entrepreneurship Award, the Competitiveness Ranking and the young entrepreneur competition will be announced and the company of the year will be revealed will be held on 2 November and you can watch it on ETV on the same evening.
- The organisation of the Entrepreneurship Award competition and the publication of the articles is co-funded by the European Union.
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