Quantum Systems is officially entering the ground autonomy game, baby.
Earlier today, German autonomy hotshot Quantum Systems introduced MANDRILL, its first unmanned ground vehicle (UGV), at the Enforce Tac trade show in Nuremberg. The $3.5B startup, better known for its aerial drones, called it the first in a line of UGVs designed to work with its other systems as part of its “overarching multi-domain strategy.”
Watch out, world: The Germans are coming. This is not a (Man)drill.
Big year, big bucks: It’s been a big past year for Quantum Systems, which has made a splash in the aerial autonomy space with its mid-range ISR eVTOL drone (Vector), a mapping-focused drone (Trinity), a short-range ISR drone (Twister), and a long-range ISR drone (Reliant).
- The company snapped up German drone-maker AirRobot last March; the British arm of Norwegian drone company Nordic Unmanned UK in September; SpleenLab, a German company that builds “AI software for autonomous systems” in October; and German ground-autonomy company FERNRIDE in December, among others.
- A lot of that spending spree was funded by a €160M ($186M) raise in May, followed by a €180M ($209M) Series C extension at a €3B ($3.49B) valuation in December, and another €150M ($178M) in financing backed by the European Investment Bank (EIB) and others earlier this month. Big bucks, indeed.
- They’ve also been a favorite of the big-spending German military, which is on a mission to build the biggest conventional army in Europe. In December, Quantum Systems snagged a €210M ($246M) contract for ISR drones to the German military this year, alongside other big-dollar (or Euro, rather) contracts.
Ground game: Given the FERNRIDE acquisition, which the company said was an effort to expand “its leadership position from air and software intelligence to autonomous ground mobility,” a longstanding partnership with German UGV startup ARX Robotics, and a new one with Ukrainian air and ground robotics startup company Frontline, Quantum Systems’ push into the ground autonomy game doesn’t exactly come as a surprise.
With MANDRILL, that move is starting to take shape:
- The UGV has a modular payload bay designed for a wide range of missions, including ISR with EO/IR systems and other sensor payloads, logistics, medical evacuations, towing, EW, and as a launch and recovery platform for aerial drones.
- It runs on Quantum Systems’ battle management and command-and-control (C2) software for unmanned systems, MOSAIC USX, making it a “prerequisite for unmanned multi-domain operations in a networked system environment,” the company said.
- And according to QS, MANDRILL is just “the beginning of a planned family of ground systems for land-based operations.”
“Our aim is not to develop a single vehicle, but to create a modular, networked ecosystem that can be flexibly adapted to the requirements of modern deployment scenarios,” QS’ head of ground robotics, Hendrik Kramer, said. “The MANDRILL is a robust, modular platform that is consistently designed for further development.”
Money moves: Clearly, that move into multi-domain systems—and Germany’s plans to spend tens of billions on new hardware in the coming years—has QS feeling pretty good about their prospects. Like, IPO-level good.
Late last week, German business outlet Manager Magazin reported that the company is not only putting together a fresh funding round worth between €400M and €600M ($470M-$710M), but they’re also prepping for an IPO, with a listing anticipated in early 2027.
Who would’ve thought a German startup would beat Anduril to an IPO?