Forget drones, aviation autonomy might just be the hottest sector in defense tech these days. (We kid—kind of.) On Tuesday, automation company Reliable Robotics won a $17.4M AFWERX contract to turn the Cessna 208B Caravan into a remotely piloted cargo hauler for the Air Force. For a startup founded by a pair of SpaceX alums […]
We told you that energetics were having a moment. This morning, rocket motor startup Firehawk Aerospace announced that it has completed a successful flight test of its 3D-printed GMLRS-class analog hybrid rocket engine as part of its ongoing Phase III SBIR contract with the Army Applications Laboratory (AAL). According to Firehawk, the hybrid rocket system […]
The robots really are coming for us. This morning, Germany-based unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) company ARX Robotics unveiled its first combat-capable UGV: Combat Gereon. The company says that the mini, battle-hardened robot-tank was built in a “European-Ukrainian development campaign” and honed with direct feedback from Ukrainian users on the frontline. “[This] system extends the reach […]
Scaling production is hard. Luckily for UK-based unmanned surface vehicle (USV) startup Kraken Technology, they’ve just partnered with German shipbuilding big dog NVL to ramp up manufacturing of their speedboat drones at NVL’s Blohm+Voss shipyard in Hamburg this year. Helps to have friends in high places. Go fast: Kraken’s roots are in manufacturing racing speed […]
The defense world is (understandably) enthralled by innovation and new tech, but the older, less exciting stuff is just as important in modern warfighting—especially the 155mm artillery shell. The problem is that the US has struggled to produce them, and munition stocks have become a hot topic (just ask Bridge Colby). On Wednesday, the Army […]
Remember when we said everyone wanted a factory of the future? Well, looks like we were right. Yesterday, Alabama-based Performance Drone Works (PDW) announced the official opening of Drone Factory 01 in Huntsville, a “state-of-the-art” production facility that the company says will be able to churn out over 60,000 FPV drones a year. The 90,000 […]
You can buy pretty much anything on Amazon, but military equipment is so far off-limits. Luckily for all of the shopaholic soldiers out there, the US Army is taking a page out of Amazon’s book and building Prime for the primes (and startups). Earlier this month, the Army announced it’s planning to roll out an […]
Things are heating up in Europe, y’all. Yesterday, Bloomberg reported that German drone company Stark is in talks to raise $60M at a $500M valuation, led by US-based mega-VC Sequoia Capital. A company spokesperson confirmed the raise to Tectonic. Other funds in talks to join the round include 8VC, Thiel Capital, the NATO Innovation Fund, […]
As we mentioned yesterday, after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Trump met in the Oval Office, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine had offered to buy about $90B worth of US weapons as part of a deal to end the war with Russia. Plus, the US would buy Ukrainian weapons once they’re cleared for export. The FT […]
Another day, another big shakeup at the Pentagon. On Monday, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin unexpectedly announced his retirement halfway into his four-year term. The Air Force said Allvin—the service’s highest-ranking uniformed officer—will continue serving until his successor is confirmed to minimize disruption. Never a dull moment, huh? Allvin is the latest […]
