--- title: Europe’s defence-AI champion Helsing is using Rakuten to... description: Munich-based defence-AI company Helsing is partnering with Japanese conglomerate Rakuten to break into Japan's arms market, using Rakuten's local expertise to... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/europe-s-defence-ai-champion-helsing-is-using-rakuten-to-break-into-japan-s-arms-market-xkerbwyak twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Europe’s defence-AI champion Helsing is using Rakuten to break into Japan’s arms market | daily.dev og:description: Munich-based defence-AI company Helsing is partnering with Japanese conglomerate Rakuten to break into Japan's arms market, using Rakuten's local expertise to... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/europe-s-defence-ai-champion-helsing-is-using-rakuten-to-break-into-japan-s-arms-market-xkerbwyak og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/xKErBwyAK.png og:image:alt: Europe’s defence-AI champion Helsing is using Rakuten to break into Japan’s arms market og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Europe’s defence-AI champion Helsing is using Rakuten to break into Japan’s arms market **[The Next Web](https://daily.dev/sources/tnw)** · 4 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Munich-based defence-AI company Helsing is partnering with Japanese conglomerate Rakuten to break into Japan's arms market, using Rakuten's local expertise to navigate the country's notoriously opaque procurement system. Japan's Ground Self-Defence Forces are field-testing Helsing's HX-2 AI-guided strike drone through the end of September. The move comes as Japan eases arms-export rules and ramps up defence spending amid tensions with China, opening the market to foreign weapons-makers. Helsing, founded in 2021, has raised billions this year and supplies drones to Ukraine, though Ukraine paused further HX-2 orders earlier this year after technical problems in the field. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### What is Helsing's HX-2 drone and why is Japan testing it? The HX-2 is a compact AI-guided strike drone made by Munich-based defence startup Helsing, currently undergoing field trials with Japan's Ground Self-Defence Forces through the end of September. Japan is evaluating foreign autonomous weapons systems after easing long-standing arms-export and procurement rules amid a major military build-up driven by regional tensions with China. _Track how defense-AI startups like Helsing are reshaping global arms markets on daily.dev._ ### Why did Ukraine pause orders of Helsing's HX-2 drone? Ukraine paused further orders of Helsing's HX-2 strike drone after encountering technical problems with it in the field. This came despite Helsing being a primary drone supplier to Ukraine with German government backing, and it highlights the gap that can exist between an impressive AI demo and a dependable battlefield weapon, a concern now shadowing Japan's own ongoing trials. _Developers weighing AI system reliability claims can follow real-world battlefield outcomes on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Helsing raises $1.8bn at an $18bn valuation](https://daily.dev/posts/helsing-raises-1-8bn-at-an-18bn-valuation-ti44xfe9x) · The Next Web · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Helsing lands Germany's €580M combat-cloud contract](https://daily.dev/posts/helsing-lands-germany-s-580m-combat-cloud-contract-p07rwmzdo) · The Next Web · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Daniel Ek-backed defense tech Helsing to raise $1.2B at $18B valuation](https://daily.dev/posts/daniel-ek-backed-defense-tech-helsing-to-raise-1-2b-at-18b-valuation-3w8rq5qe8) · TechCrunch · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [As Europe rearms, the ‘wingman’ drone takes centre stage at the Berlin airshow](https://daily.dev/posts/as-europe-rearms-the-wingman-drone-takes-centre-stage-at-the-berlin-airshow-mlpmmk70m) · The Next Web · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Ukraine Weapons Tech Thrives Amid Conflict](https://daily.dev/posts/ukraine-weapons-tech-thrives-amid-conflict-b9n5zknpc) · IEEE Spectrum · 1 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#ai](https://daily.dev/tags/ai), [#autonomous-systems](https://daily.dev/tags/autonomous-systems), [#defense-tech](https://daily.dev/tags/defense-tech) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/europe-s-defence-ai-champion-helsing-is-using-rakuten-to-break-into-japan-s-arms-market-xkerbwyak) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Europe’s defence-AI champion Helsing is using Rakuten to break into Japan’s arms market","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/europe-s-defence-ai-champion-helsing-is-using-rakuten-to-break-into-japan-s-arms-market-xkerbwyak","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/europe-s-defence-ai-champion-helsing-is-using-rakuten-to-break-into-japan-s-arms-market-xkerbwyak"},"datePublished":"2026-08-17T10:29:40.929Z","dateModified":"2026-08-17T10:30:01.833Z","description":"Munich-based defence-AI company Helsing is partnering with Japanese conglomerate Rakuten to break into Japan's arms market, using Rakuten's local expertise to...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/cf1f677990bd39e743cfc91f980bef37?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/cf1f677990bd39e743cfc91f980bef37?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"The Next Web","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"The Next Web","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/tnw","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/tnw"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/europe-s-defence-ai-champion-helsing-is-using-rakuten-to-break-into-japan-s-arms-market-xkerbwyak","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"ai,autonomous-systems,defense-tech","timeRequired":"PT4M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Next Web","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/tnw"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Europe’s defence-AI champion Helsing is using Rakuten to break into Japan’s arms market"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/europe-s-defence-ai-champion-helsing-is-using-rakuten-to-break-into-japan-s-arms-market-xkerbwyak#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"What is Helsing's HX-2 drone and why is Japan testing it?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"The HX-2 is a compact AI-guided strike drone made by Munich-based defence startup Helsing, currently undergoing field trials with Japan's Ground Self-Defence Forces through the end of September. 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