What It Takes to Build a War-Ready Drone - Florian Seibel | Part I

Drone Wars

From Startup to Battlefield: Florian Seibel on Building Drones That Actually Work in War

In this episode of Drone Wars, Dan Magy sits down with Florian Seibel, CEO and co-founder of Quantum Systems, to talk about what it takes to build drone systems that actually survive in combat.
Florian shares the journey from struggling startup to a critical player in Ukraine’s defense, the lessons learned from early failures in hostile EW environments, and how Quantum built an agile, software-driven drone architecture that adapts to real-world needs.
From dual-use challenges in Europe to defense procurement gaps in the West, this conversation dives deep into the hard realities of modern drone warfare.
Timestamps:
0:00 – Florian Seibel's Background and Quantum Systems
3:02 – Building a Defense Company in Europe
5:03 – Quantum Systems' Commitment to Ukraine
10:51 – Operational Challenges in Ukraine
14:47 – Lessons Learned and Future Preparedness
17:11 – Industrial Base and Software-Defined Defense
19:03 – Challenges with Certification and Regulation
🎙️ Guest: Florian Seibel, CEO of Quantum Systems (https://www.linkedin.com/in/florian-seibel-8a78b99b/)
🎙️ Host: Dan Magy, CEO of Firestorm
#DroneWars #QuantumSystems #Ukraine #MilitaryTech #LoiteringMunition #DefenseInnovation

About Drone Wars

Firestorm Studios brings you The Drone Wars Podcast, a show that explores all facets of autonomous systems - ground, air, and sea - and their transformative impact on various aspects of human life, from agriculture to warfare. We feature interviews with CEOs, founders, and C-suite executives from the world's leading autonomy and robotics companies.