Look out, world. The Erik Prince (backed) universe is growing.
Yesterday, Ukrainian-American drone autonomy software company Swarmer ($SWMR) announced that it’s entered into an agreement to acquire Ukrainian UGV producer Ratel Robotics in a deal worth up to $224M (a mix of cash and stock).
This is Swarmer’s first acquisition since Prince joined as chair and the company had its mega-IPO on the Nasdaq back in March.
“Ratel is a major provider of UGVs for Ukraine,” President and US CEO of Swarmer Alex Fink said in a statement. “We believe that UGVs can act as a universal launch-platform for UAVs, interceptors, and other unmanned autonomous assets. Combining a battle-tested launch platform with our combat-proven autonomy software is the key to creating versatile, interoperable solutions.”
We love when autonomy goes cross-domain.
Buzz buzz: Now, Swarmer should need no introduction, but it’s been a busy year, so here’s a bit of a backgrounder.
- The company was founded in 2023 by Fink and Serhii Kupriienko in Ukraine, and builds software that enables “groups of drones to execute missions autonomously, translating human-defined objectives into coordinated action.”
- That’s particularly important in-theater in places like Ukraine, where there are millions of different drones produced a year—and they all need to speak to each other.
- And they’ve, like, done their time. The company has flown over 100,000 combat hours in Ukraine (according to their S-1), and has over $15M in sales backlogs.
The company has been a known entity in Ukraine and defense tech circles for years now, but in March they made their big-time debut and announced Prince was joining the charge.
- To note, per the S-1, the company’s sales in 2025 totaled $309,920, down from $329,410 in 2024. Total funding (prior to the IPO) was about $17.7M (a $2.7M seed followed by a $15M Series A).
- The company went public at $5/share in March. On Day 1 of trading, stocks opened at $12.50, peaked at $40, then closed that day at $31—a 520% gain from initial pricing.
- On Day 2, things got even crazier—at its peak, Swarmer ($SWMR) jumped to $65/share, and closed at around $55/share. As of yesterday (Sept. 10), it’s settled around $36/share with a market cap of $574M. Not too shabby.
- Prince himself made a pretty penny (or has the option to make a pretty penny) off the IPO—per SEC filings, he has options covering 1.774M shares at a $3.3334 exercise price, currently worth about $58M.
Pack it in: It seems that alllll that capital might now very well be going toward a bit of a Ukrainian defense tech rollup.
“In my recent letter to shareholders, I stated our objective to build a platform company for products that have been tested on the battlefield, and proven effective under the most demanding operational conditions,” Prince said in a statement. “Ratel precisely fits that mission.”
So, here’s what they’re buying. Ratel makes a bunch of different UGVs, including:
- Ratel S: A small, fast one-way attack UGV that can haul up to ~35 kg (77 lbs) of explosives or anti-tank mines. Ratel’s original—and best-known—platform.
- Ratel M: A medium logistics and medevac UGV, built to move 200+ kg (441+ lbs) of ammunition, supplies, or wounded troops.
- Ratel H: A heavy-logistics UGV that carries 400+ kg (882+ lbs) and can tow up to 1.5 tons. Think of this as the workhorse of the fleet.
- Ratel X: A newer 6X6 UGV with a 400 kg (882 lb) payload, which can do everything from logistics to ISR.
- Ratel Deminer: The company’s mine-clearing platform.
- Nurse TB20: A dedicated vehicle for medevac.
Fast friends: And here’s how the merger will work:
- Ratel’s CEO, Taras Ostapchuk, will report directly to Fink, and the firm’s 300 employees will join Swarmer. That will bring Swarmer up to 500 people in total.
- According to the company’s release, Ratel “has secured contracts totaling $86M [this year], and is in contract discussions with multiple NATO nations.” Those would now roll over to Swarmer.
- Per Swarmer, Ratel’s products accounted for “approximately 37% of the entire 11 billion UAH ($246.85M) spent by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense Procurement Agency on UGV procurement contracts from Jan. 1 to April 18, 2026.” Swarmer would also absorb all those agreements once the deal goes through.
- Worth noting—the company is also looking to expand its aerial offerings, which is Swarmer’s bread and butter.
“Having served in the armed forces of Ukraine, I understand first-hand the risks soldiers face on the battlefield,” Ostapchuk said in a statement. “That experience inspired me to create robotic systems capable of taking on the most dangerous missions and protecting human lives. Together with Swarmer, we plan to combine ground capabilities and aerial capabilities with increasing levels of autonomy.”
