What Conflict Armament Research does

Conflict Armament Research (CAR) is an independent, London-based research organization founded in 2011 that documents weapons and ammunition in active armed conflicts and traces them through their supply chains. CAR's investigation teams operate on the ground in conflict zones across Central Africa, Central Asia, East Africa, Eastern Europe, the Gulf and Middle East, North Africa, Southeast Asia and the Pacific, and West Africa. The organization has documented over 40,000 items recovered from Islamic State forces (2014-2017), 800+ missile and UAV components from Red Sea maritime seizures (2024-2025), and 700+ IED components, establishing a unique evidentiary dataset that feeds its core analytical outputs.

CAR's core product is iTrace, a European Union and German Government-funded global weapon tracking database accessed via a dedicated portal (itrace.conflictarm.com) and visualized through ArcGIS Dashboards and StoryMaps. iTrace combines field forensic documentation — physical inspection, photography, geo-referencing, and chain-of-custody tracing — with engagement of governments and manufacturers for source verification, supplemented by documentary evidence and interviews. This is delivered alongside a publications catalog covering Reports, Frontline Perspectives, Field Dispatches, Technical analyses, Guides, and Digests in multiple languages, all distributed as free PDF downloads.

CAR operates as a grant-funded non-profit research entity rather than a commercial business. It provides all publications and database access free of charge to policy makers, national arms export control agencies, and the public. Its customer base is institutional — government policy makers, national arms export control agencies, and international bodies implementing frameworks such as the UN Programme of Action and the Arms Trade Treaty — with revenue derived almost entirely from EU and German Government grants channeled through the iTrace project. Distribution is primarily direct via website downloads, the iTrace portal, and mailing list subscription.

Name

Conflict Armament Research

Legal name

Conflict Armament Research

Website

https://conflictarm.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Conflict Armament Research is an independent London-based non-profit that documents weapons at the point of use in active conflict zones worldwide and traces their supply chains through its EU and German Government-funded iTrace database, serving government policy makers and arms export control agencies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Arms Control and Conflict Research Services

NAICS

Small Arms, Ordnance, and Ordnance Accessories Manufacturing (332994), Ammunition (except Small Arms) Manufacturing (332993)

SIC

Ordnance & Accessories, (No Vehicles/Guided Missiles) (3480), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Demilitarization, Disposal & Ordnance Remediation (EOD Support) (IMABAHAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Ammunition Manufacturing (Small-, Medium- & Large-Caliber) (IMABAHAG), Tactical & Strategic Missile Systems (IMABAHAB), Military Weapons Integration & Stores Management (IMABAMAG)

Keywords

• Weapons tracking research
• Arms supply chain analysis
• Conflict zone investigations
• Arms control monitoring
• Weapon documentation services

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Government Grants and Funding: CAR operates as a non-profit research organization primarily funded by government grants. The iTrace project is specifically funded by the European Union and German Government, providing policy makers with weapon transfer information.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Conflict Armament Research documents weapons, ammunition, missiles, UAV components, and related materiel recovered in active armed conflicts, then traces these items through their supply chains to identify manufacturers, brokers, and transfer routes. Field investigation teams physically inspect and photograph weapons at the point of use, feeding evidence into the proprietary iTrace weapon tracking database and producing reports, field dispatches, and technical guides used by policy makers and export control agencies.

Product overview

Conflict Armament Research (CAR) operates a unified research and investigation system focused on documenting and tracking weapons in active armed conflicts. The core offering consists of field investigation teams that physically document weapons at the point of use, feeding data into the iTrace global weapon tracking database (accessed via the iTrace Portal). This platform is supplemented by published research outputs including Reports, Frontline Perspectives, Field Dispatches, Technical publications, Guides, and the Diversion Digest series. CAR's work spans multiple geographic regions and covers weapons types from small arms to major conventional systems, missiles, and UAVs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• iTrace: A European Union and German Government-funded global weapon tracking database and monitoring system that provides policy makers with verified information on weapon transfers and serves as an independent monitor for international arms control agreements.

Products and services

• iTrace Weapon Tracking Database iTrace is a global weapon tracking database funded by the European Union and the German Government. It provides policymakers, national arms export control agencies, and international bodies with precise, verified information on transfers of diverted weapons, ammunition, missile and UAV components, and related materiel, combining field-collected data with supply-chain traces.
• iTrace Portal The iTrace Portal is the online platform through which policymakers and government users access CAR's rapidly expanding global dataset of documented weapons, alongside ArcGIS-powered interactive maps and case studies that visualize weapon flow data across multiple conflict regions.
• Field Investigations CAR field investigation teams physically inspect, photograph, and geo-reference weapons, ammunition, and related materiel at the point of recovery in active armed conflicts, tracing them back through supply chains using physical evidence, government and commercial documents, and interviews with knowledgeable individuals.
• Research Publications (Reports, Perspectives, Guides, Technical, Digest) Research publications including Reports, Perspectives, Field Guides, Technical analyses, and Digests that document weapon tracing findings, IED component analysis, and supply chain investigations in multiple languages (English, French, Arabic, Turkish, Ukrainian).
• Field Dispatches Time-critical mini-reports issued from CAR's frontline field investigations, providing breaking news and rapid updates on weapons documented in active conflicts such as Myanmar, Yemen, Ukraine, and Syria.

Quantifiable outcome

• More than 40,000 items documented and analyzed from Islamic State forces alone (2014-2017)
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• SIPRI (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute): Independent international institute delivering data and analysis on armaments, arms transfers, and conflict — including annual arms-transfer databases cited by governments. Overlaps with CAR on policy-facing arms-control evidence but operates with a broader, academic mandate.
• Stimson Center: Washington-based think tank with programs on weapons of mass destruction, conventional arms transfers, and trafficking. Comparable policy-research orientation and donor base to CAR, though it operates as a generalist security think tank rather than a field-investigation specialist.
• Janes: Commercial defense intelligence provider selling OSINT and proprietary analysis on military platforms and weapon systems to governments and defense primes. Comparable intelligence layer to iTrace but a much larger, commercially-priced incumbent focused on hardware rather than illicit flows.
• RAND Corporation: Large US policy-research organization producing evidence-based analysis on defense, security, and counter-trafficking. Overlaps with CAR on the policy-research and government-funder side, but operates at far greater scale and with a much broader mandate.

Direct peers

• Small Arms Survey: Geneva-based research project producing independent evidence on small arms and illicit weapons flows. Directly comparable to CAR as a grant-funded, policy-oriented weapons research shop that publishes open reports for governments and multilateral bodies.
• C4ADS (Center for Advanced Defense Studies): US-based non-profit that combines open-source data with field intelligence to expose illicit networks, including arms trafficking. Comparable mission profile and methodology mix (field investigation + analytical databases), making it the closest US analog to CAR.
• Bellingcat: Open-source investigations collective producing evidence-based reporting on conflicts, weapon flows, and state-sponsored illicit activity. Comparable in applying OSINT plus on-the-ground evidence to produce attribution that governments and media cite — overlapping use cases with CAR's iTrace output.

Emerging players

• Article 36: UK-based non-profit working on the governance of autonomous and conventional weapons, producing policy briefs and investigations. Comparable geographically and by topic overlap with CAR, though smaller and more advocacy-focused than documentation-focused.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/conflictarm

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Conflict Armament Research