Artificial intelligence is becoming part of almost every industry, and RACOM is no exception. We have been using AI for several years, and today it is hard to imagine many of our activities without it. It helps us speed up development, work more efficiently and do things that would have been very difficult or extremely expensive just a few years ago. But AI also has its downsides.

Today, we use more than 25 AI models across almost all departments. We see the greatest benefits in software development and testing, where AI helps with routine coding, testing new releases and more complex development tasks. In some areas, AI now supports more than half of the work.

We also use AI for invoice processing and first-level technical support. In marketing, it helps us review texts, create different language versions, produce videos and generate voice-overs in various languages.

AI allows us to spend more time on activities where our people add the most value. People, however, remain at the heart of RACOM – we continue to actively recruit new colleagues in 2026, while personal technical support and direct contact with our customers remain a matter of course.

When using AI, we place strong emphasis on cybersecurity, protecting our intellectual property and handling data securely. Our approach also includes separate physical infrastructure and systematic security management, supported by ISO 27001 and IEC 62443-4-1 certifications.

The rapid development of AI is significantly increasing demand for electronic components used in data centres and AI infrastructure. The entire electronics industry is feeling the impact. Some components, particularly memory chips, are in short supply, with prices rising by tens of percent and lead times increasing significantly. Even confirmed orders are being cancelled or postponed by many months, sometimes by more than a year. We are seeing a similar situation with printed circuit boards.

AI is also accelerating the development of increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks. As a result, modern, reliable and secure communication solutions are becoming increasingly important for critical infrastructure operators. Secure data transmission in critical applications has been RACOM’s core business for many years.

The current situation reminds us of the component supply crisis in 2022 during the COVID period. The experience we gained then helps us respond proactively today.

We are significantly increasing our stocks of critical components and purchasing them well in advance. We have increased the value of key materials held in stock by approximately 50%. Even high inventory levels, however, are no absolute guarantee – a single missing component can stop production.

At the same time, we are expanding our in-house manufacturing capabilities and increasing our self-sufficiency. We are investing in new technologies and planning a facility extension at our SMT centre in Blansko. We are also adding new CNC machines to our mechanical workshop.

AI helps us speed up development, improve the quality of our products and work more efficiently. At the same time, however, it is bringing changes to the component market and creating new security challenges.

Our priority remains the same: to increase the value we deliver to our customers, ensure the availability of our products, and deliver them within reasonable lead times at fair prices.

We are doing everything we can to absorb rising costs. With our experience, forward purchasing, in-house manufacturing capabilities and, above all, the work of our people, we aim to manage these changes with minimal impact on our customers.

In June, we were surprised by a phone call from the Office of the President of the Czech Republic, asking whether President Petr Pavel could come and visit us. Of course, we said yes. At the same time, we wondered what might bring the President to visit an “insignificant company” from the Vysočina Region, especially outside his official visits to the regions of the Czech Republic.

One of the reasons is probably that we are a Czech-owned company that has been developing and manufacturing wireless data communication equipment for 35 years. Today, our products operate in more than 140 countries worldwide, predominantly in critical infrastructure – in energy, water management, transportation, and oil & gas. We still keep all our development and manufacturing in our own hands, right here in the Czech Republic, Europe.

This year, we have also entered the defence sector, where our technologies are finding applications in, among other things, communication systems for unmanned vehicles.

We are pleased that our long-standing commitment to doing things properly has attracted attention even at Prague Castle.

Source: Česká televize

The President and his wife spent the entire morning at RACOM and took a keen interest in how the company works. How we manage to attract talented people to development and manufacturing despite being based in a small town in the Vysočina Region. Why we have very low employee turnover, and how we manage to succeed in global markets while competing with much larger international companies.

The President and his delegation toured practically the entire company, taking a close look at our individual workplaces, development, manufacturing, and products.

The tour was followed by a short press briefing, during which the President answered questions from the accompanying journalists, including a crew from Czech Television.

In his answers, he highlighted the importance of companies such as RACOM for both the Czech Republic and the European Union. He was also impressed by RACOM’s story – how the enthusiasm and hard work of its founders gradually spread to other employees and helped build a successful company with a global reach.

In today’s unstable world, he stressed the importance of maintaining the greatest possible degree of self-sufficiency and independence, particularly in the technologies on which critical infrastructure and defence depend.

The President’s visit was a pleasant surprise for us, and we are genuinely delighted about it. We see it as recognition of what we do at RACOM and confirmation that long-term, dedicated work matters and does not go unnoticed.

And because RACOM is not just a brand, products, or buildings, but above all its people, our thanks go to all our employees – both those who are with us today and those who have been part of RACOM in the past. For more than 35 years, they have collectively shaped the story of the company that brought the President of the Czech Republic to the Vysočina Region this time.

This year, we reached an important milestone by securing our first project in Algeria, marking the successful outcome of more than a decade of effort. Although we had previously carried out numerous tests for several Algerian companies, none of them had resulted in a real deployment until now.

Working together with SMAR, AIRadio, Codep, and SARPI, we have now secured a project for Sonatrach, Algeria’s state-owned oil and gas company. As the country’s largest enterprise, Sonatrach is involved in the entire value chain—from oil and gas exploration and production to transportation, processing, and sales. The company has more than 150 subsidiaries and affiliated companies, employs around 200,000 people, and ranks among the most significant companies in Africa.

The project began in 2022, when we carried out the first tests with Codep. It then continued in 2023, when we hosted representatives of the Brazilian company SMAR at RACOM to test their PLC systems used by Sonatrach. Following successful trials, additional technical testing, and tender processes, we delivered the first 120 RipEX radio modems this year. They will become part of a SCADA network in southern Algeria, with additional deliveries expected after the successful commissioning of the initial deployment.

In July, we welcomed a large delegation from Algeria to RACOM headquarters. The main purpose of their visit was to carry out the Factory Acceptance Test (FAT) of the supplied equipment. Over several days, the customer worked closely with our engineers to verify the complete solution, including the configuration of the RipEX radio modems and compliance with all required specifications.

The FAT also gave the participants the opportunity to gain hands-on experience with the configuration, operation, and management of the RipEX radio modems, ensuring they are well prepared for the field deployment. The FAT was successfully completed, the equipment was formally accepted by the customer, and it was cleared for shipment to the installation site in southern Algeria.

As always, our technical support team will continue to provide remote assistance and, whenever required, on-site support during the commissioning of the system.

In July, we manufactured the very last MR400 radio modem. It is heading to Finland, where it will be used to expand an existing network. It is remarkable to think that this product remained in production for more than 20 years.

During that time, thousands of MR400 modems were deployed around the world. Many of them are still operating continuously today, proving that quality engineering and robust design truly stand the test of time.

Ending production is a natural step. Key electronic components used in the modem are no longer available, and the product no longer meets today’s cybersecurity requirements. However, we are not leaving our customers without support. We continue to service the MR400 and, thanks to our stock of spare parts, we believe we will be able to support installed units for many years to come.

Long-term service and product support are among the values RACOM has always been committed to. We still service our very first product, the R2CW amateur radio transceiver, introduced back in 1989.

The accompanying photos also remind us that behind every long-lasting product are the people who created it. Some of the colleagues who helped bring the MR400 to life more than twenty years ago are still part of RACOM today. While they have changed a little over the years, the modem itself has remained virtually unchanged. In the meantime, they have passed on their knowledge and expertise to a new generation of colleagues, many of whom were only just starting school when the MR400 was introduced.

The MR400 is not the only example of exceptional product longevity. We are still able to supply the first generation of the RipEX radio modem, introduced in 2011, in limited quantities to expand existing networks. However, after fifteen years, this product is also gradually approaching the end of its lifecycle, while service and support remain available.

We would like to thank all our customers who have trusted the MR400 for more than two decades. Its exceptional longevity confirms our belief that reliability, long-term support, and continuity remain essential for critical infrastructure communications.

At RACOM, we have always believed that great technology starts with curious minds and the courage to solve real problems.

For more than 30 years, we have been designing and manufacturing communication systems that keep critical infrastructure running – water management, energy networks, industrial automation, public safety, and defence applications where reliability is essential and failure is not an option.

Behind every product is deep engineering expertise: RF design, FPGA development, embedded systems, cybersecurity, microwave technologies, mechanical precision, and software development. Everything is developed and manufactured in-house in Czechia, giving us full control over quality and innovation.

This high-tech foundation has naturally brought us close to the academic world. For many years, we have worked closely with leading Czech technical universities, especially Czech Technical University in Prague and Brno University of Technology, as well as other top institutions across the country.

We know that the next generation of engineers is not built after graduation – it starts much earlier.

That is why we created RACOM Academy.

RACOM Academy connects talented students with real engineering challenges. Instead of waiting until graduation to gain practical experience, students can start working now – on technologies that are deployed in the field and used around the world.

This is not an internship built around observation. It is direct involvement in meaningful projects.

Students work on real assignments with experienced mentors, contributing to communication systems used in critical infrastructure and advanced wireless technologies. Whether the focus is radio systems, microwave links, embedded development, cybersecurity, or signal processing, the goal is always the same: practical experience with real impact.

As Marek Bobula, Technical Director at RACOM, often says:

“Our goal has never been to create ordinary products, but to push technology further. Working with talented students helps us do exactly that.”

We designed RACOM Academy to make cooperation meaningful – for students and for mentors.

Participants gain flexibility to work remotely, from the office, or in a hybrid mode depending on their studies and project needs. Students visiting our headquarters can even stay in company accommodation, making collaboration easier and more comfortable.

Each student works with a dedicated mentor. We intentionally accept only as many students as we have mentors for, ensuring personal guidance instead of generic task assignment.

The Academy also helps students connect their diploma thesis or PhD research with real industrial applications. Instead of writing work that ends in a drawer, they can build something that solves real-world problems.

“What impressed me most was that RACOM is a Czech company with development and manufacturing based in Czechia. They offered me an attractive diploma thesis topic, and I have the freedom to manage my time between my studies, my thesis, and my work at RACOM. It gives me real flexibility while allowing me to work on something meaningful.”
Pavol, Masaryk University Faculty of Informatics

Many students join RACOM through their university projects and stay much longer.

Some start with a diploma thesis topic, others bring their own research ideas. Typical areas include advanced RF engineering, wideband frequency modulation, frequency synthesizer optimization, signal equalization, or solving residual frequency offset challenges in broadband systems.

But the Academy is not limited to predefined topics.

If a student has an ambitious idea worth developing, we want to hear it.

Because innovation rarely starts with a perfectly prepared assignment – it starts with curiosity.

Our cooperation with universities is not occasional; it is part of how we grow.

From student projects and diploma thesis to long-term research collaboration, partnerships with institutions like Czech Technical University in Prague and Brno University of Technology help us stay close to emerging talent and fresh technical perspectives.

A recent example is our colleague and PhD student Radim Zedka, a graduate of RACOM Academy, whose paper Unique Word Channel Estimation for Oversampled OTFS was accepted to the prestigious journal IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology. His research addresses a real-world challenge in modern wireless communication, where standard OTFS waveforms lose reliability under oversampling and pulse shaping. Radim’s UW-OTFS approach removes pilot-data interference, improves performance in high-mobility environments, increases spectral efficiency by up to 36%, and reduces out-of-band emissions for practical deployment. Developed in cooperation with Trinity College Dublin and Brno University of Technology, the paper is a strong example of how scientific research at RACOM moves directly from academic theory into robust engineering practice.

This relationship benefits both sides: universities stay connected to industrial practice, and we gain access to brilliant young engineers ready to challenge established thinking.

RACOM Academy gives this cooperation a clear structure and long-term vision.

Technology companies often talk about innovation. For us, innovation means investing in people who will shape the next generation of communication systems.

RACOM Academy is not just a recruitment programme. It is a commitment to technical excellence, knowledge sharing, and long-term development.

Because the best engineers are not found – they are built.

And the best time to start is while they are still sitting in a lecture hall.

Since 1991, we have been providing secure communications for the sectors modern society depends on: energy, water management, gas distribution, and ISP networks.

In 2026, we are extending this mission into a new domain – delivering advanced communication systems to those who protect us all. We bring into the defence industry the same qualities for which we are valued in critical infrastructure: 30 years of expertise, in-house development and manufacturing in Czechia, reliability, security, dedicated support…

Technical excellence has always been our hallmark, and our products consistently deliver more than is required for standard use. Even though we meet the strictest demands of critical infrastructure, we know there is room to go further. If we are to continue pushing the boundaries of our technology and advancing our capabilities and knowledge, we must measure ourselves against the highest standards – and those are set by the defence sector.

“Our goal has never been to make more products, but to make better products. The defence sector is an environment that naturally pushes us in that direction.” says Marek Bobula, RACOM Technical Director

Our devices operate reliably in more than 130 countries, placing us among the world’s leading communication technology providers. All development and manufacturing is carried out in-house in the Czech Republic, Europe.

Our team includes experts in RF engineering, FPGA design, duplexer and RF filter development, operating system engineering, and graphical user interface design.
We operate our own climate chambers and anechoic chamber, an SMT centre for PCB assembly, and a modern mechanical production facility including precision CNC machining.

This allows us to maintain complete control over every detail and to exceed what is considered standard in our industry.

Our first contact with the defence community emerged naturally. Specialists working in robotics and unmanned systems noticed our radio modems for their reliability and high performance.

In 2019, we participated in the Orpheus project at Brno University of Technology, where the RipEX2 ensured data transmission for a robotic vehicle designed for hazardous-area reconnaissance. It became clear, however, that a standard RipEX was not ideal for such missions – the size and weight posed limitations. This inspired the idea of developing a specialised radio module for mobile and unmanned applications.

Geopolitical developments and the war in Ukraine in 2024 accelerated our decision to enter the defence sector fully. We began active cooperation with system integrators and joined the defence community becoming members of the ULAR group, attending at IDET, participating in the government’s PRODEF programme, and joining missions to Ukraine and the USA. Our equipment was tested during the allied CWIX 25 exercise, and we are preparing for the Silent Swarm 2026 exercise in the United States.

The result of this journey is the launch of a new product line of embedded data radios. The first device in this line is WaSP – a compact, software-defined radio modem designed for demanding applications. It is primarily intended for data communication with unmanned systems (UAVs and UGVs), but it is equally suited for any application requiring reliable connectivity in harsh environments.

In WaSP, we have embedded what has always driven us – top-tier technical performance, precision, reliability, and a passion for innovation.

“Defence is a natural continuation of our story.  It is not a change of direction, but an expansion of our mission: to ensure communication where failure is not an option.” says Vít Koutenský, RACOM Executive Director

The year 2025 was an exceptionally successful one for RACOM. Our revenues increased by 30% year on year compared to 2024, with more than 85% of manufactured equipment exported to 60 countries worldwide. These results clearly reflect our long-term strategy, the technological quality of our solutions, and above all the excellent work of the entire RACOM team.

Our sincere thanks go to all employees who contributed to this achievement. Their expertise, commitment, and teamwork were key to the successful delivery of projects around the world. At the same time, 2025 once again confirmed RACOM’s position as a global leader in reliable communication technologies for mission-critical applications.

In recent years, many forecasts have predicted a decline in the radio modem market, with this technology expected to be largely replaced by cellular routers. For RACOM, however, the opposite proved true. The radio modem segment recorded its strongest growth in recent years, with sales exceeding 2024 figures by more than 50%.

Of the three product segments in which RACOM operates, the cellular router market is growing at the fastest pace, and it is also the most competitive. Despite our focus on a highly specialized segment serving mission-critical applications, we achieved year-on-year growth of nearly 20% in this area as well. A notable success was the deployment of M!DGE cellular routers for emergency services in Romania, where we secured a contract for more than 1,000 units.

The global microwave link market in which RACOM operates has been largely stagnating in recent years. This is mainly due to the modernization of mobile operators’ backbone networks for 5G, during which existing links are dismantled and subsequently reused for high-speed last-mile connections, as well as the continued expansion of fiber-optic networks. Despite these factors, we achieved growth of approximately 5% in the microwave link segment.

In January, our sales team traditionally met with company management to review the results of 2025 and discuss the outlook for 2026. These discussions confirmed that the outlook for 2026 is optimistic, with expectations of achieving results comparable to those of 2025.

Thanks to the strong team we have at RACOM, we look forward to delivering many more exciting projects in the year ahead.

Official part

We managed to go for a run

…and even ice swimming

and attend a hockey game

As in previous year, we gathered once again at Medlov to celebrate the end of the year together at our Christmas party. This time, however, we traveled back in time – the evening was inspired by the spirit of the 1930s, full of elegance, style, and a refined atmosphere.

Stylish costumes, period decorations, and a great atmosphere created the perfect setting for a pleasant get-together, shared experiences, and moments beyond the working environment. The party was not only a celebration of a very successful past year, but also an opportunity to thank all colleagues for their cooperation, dedication, and team spirit.

The entire evening once again confirmed that RACOM is not only about technology, but above all about people who form one team and truly know how to enjoy time together.

You can relive the atmosphere of the party in the photo gallery, which captures the best moments of the evening. You really should take a look!