FOMO.08: Taavi Kotka on drone mission

There is a specific type of restlessness that has defined Estonia’s digital rise over the last two decades, and it usually bears Taavi Kotka’s fingerprints.

Taavi Kotka is the man who helped build Nortal (one of the region’s largest IT services firms), served as the nation’s first Chief Information Officer (CIO), and famously fathered e-Residency.

But today, Kotka isn’t talking about virtual borders or code. He is talking about “yogurt-bottle bombs” and the “lethal trifecta” of drone warfare.

Speaking from South Africa — a brief respite before returning to his “tribe” under the grey Estonian skies — Kotka is typically blunt. “Drones matter to me because they are the fastest capability we can build without taking on debt,” he says. “For the price of one shell, you can get at least ten drones.”

Despite the nation-building projects, Kotka remains grounded by the ordinary demands of a father of four. “Every now and then, I have to remind myself that I also need to make money,” he says. “And besides helping raise everyone else’s children, I still have to raise my own.”

One of his proudest recent achievements happened at the kitchen table rather than the cabinet table: helping his youngest son prepare for the grueling entrance exams to Tallinn Reaalkool. For the uninitiated, Reaalkool is one of Estonia’s premier elite schools; its entrance exams are a high-stakes rite of passage for the country’s future “smart generation.”

Did he get in? “He did,” Taavi says. For a man who hates “jobud” (fools), seeing his own children clear the highest academic hurdles is a fundamental part of the mission.

---

Context: The “Fourth Pillar” Toolkit

To understand why a tech founder is teaching civilians how to drop yogurt bottles from drones in his backyard, you have to understand the Estonian context:

• The Startup State: In the Estonian ecosystem, the lines between startups, investors, and the state are blurred. Entrepreneurs treat government inefficiencies like “bugs” that need a private-sector “patch.”

• HK Unicorn Squad: Kotka’s technology club for girls, founded after his own daughter was excluded from a robotics club. It’s an attempt to fix the tech gap from the ground up.

• KMD INF: A data-heavy tax reporting system. While most see it as a boring administrative hurdle, Kotka considers it his most “financially meaningful” project because it required the society to trust the state with their business secrets to ensure a fairer environment.

---

From Pacifist to Drone Pilot

Fifteen years ago, Kotka was a pacifist who wouldn’t touch a rifle. Today, he runs Kuri Kotkas (Angry Eagle), a civilian drone training initiative. He isn’t playing soldier; he’s running the numbers.

“We cannot afford to adopt the attitude that we are going to build up the same kind of air force or artillery as countries that are larger than us,” Kotka explains. For him, a small country cannot win by being a “poor copy” of a superpower. Speed and intelligence are the only viable currencies.

“Estonia’s teeth should be hidden in drones,” he says. “If we had a credible drone force in the air, on land, and at sea, it would be a capability that could be built up more quickly than a classic heavy army.”

Photos: Mario Pedanik

The Legacy of Impatience

Kotka’s motivations are visceral. He admits to a low tolerance for stupidity — a trait that can read as arrogance. Whether it is fixing the tax system with KMD INF or ensuring his children become “the kind of people who step in to help,” his goal is a society that works.

He doesn’t call his projects successes yet. If the Unicorn Squad is only in 30 of 600 schools, he calls it “unfinished business.” Success, in Kotka’s world, isn’t a headline; it’s a tangible return on investment for the tribe.

“People cannot choose where they are born,” Kotka says. “But once you’ve ended up here... then eventually you start to care about how this place works.”

SensusQ sought bankruptcy protection a few months ago, but this week the court ended the process as unnecessary at the company’s request. More in Estonian below:

MOVES

Magnus-Valdemar Saar, former head of the Estonian Centre of Defence Investment and National Armament Director, has taken over as Chief Executive Officer of new defence tech startup Wolfram Europa, which came out of stealth with the announcement.
”Modern warfare moves at industrial speed. The side that can design, build, and produce systems faster and at scale will define the battlefield. Technology alone is not enough; sovereign manufacturing capacity is the real strategic advantage,” the company said in a statement.

Mari-Liis Lind, Katrin Isotamm, and Luukas Kristjan Ilves are joining the state’s Eesti.ai team, bringing additional experience in AI use across the private and public sectors, building the digital state, entrepreneurship, and strategic communications.

The Eesti.ai team will compile its initial programme and working plan by the first formal meeting of its advisory board on April 8. The goal of Eesti.ai is to increase the value of Estonian people’s work and the economy through the systematic implementation of AI.

AWARDS

Lightyear founders Mihkel Aamer and Martin Sokk won the EY Entrepreneur of the Year award in Estonia. Previous startup-sector winners include Arno Kütt and Peep Kuld of Cleveron (2017 and 2019), Kuldar Väärsi of Milrem (2024), Kaarel Kotkas of Veriff (2020), and Jevgeni Kabanov of Zeroturnaround (2016).

“The winner stood out for their ability to bridge ambition with balance: growing rapidly while remaining deliberate. This is a hallmark of mature leadership that creates value for shareholders, employees, and society at large,” EY Eesti partner Ranno Tingas said in a statement.

Mihkel Aamer and Martin Sokk, recipients of the title, noted that the recognition belongs to the entire team. “From the start, we have believed that lasting success is built on a clear mission, honest work, and a strong team. The past few years have been fast-paced, but by working together, we have managed to grow and evolve despite challenging conditions. This award provides the momentum to move forward and set our next targets.”

Have a fast-paced week in building your teams!