Haye Kesteloo is the Editor in Chief and Founder of DroneXL.co, where he covers all drone-related news, DJI rumors and writes drone reviews, and of EVXL.co, for all electric vehicle news. Haye can be reached at haye @ dronexl.co or @hayekesteloo. Also on LinkedIn, Muck Rack, Instagram and YouTube.
The U.S. Navy spent $150 million developing HELIOS, its shipboard laser defense system. Ukrainian engineers built one that fits in the trunk of a car for a few million dollars. That cost gap tells you everything about how this war is reshaping the defense industry. A new report from The Atlantic, published today by staff…
The HAMZA-3 has a trick most kamikaze drones don’t: modular Lüneberg lenses that inflate its radar cross-section to mimic a fighter jet. Enemy air defense systems burn through expensive interceptor missiles on a drone that costs a fraction of the aircraft it pretends to be. The HAMZA-3 fills the gap between FPV kamikaze drones and…
The idea of using drones as mobile cell towers isn’t new. We’ve covered it in disaster response scenarios, from drones creating temporary mobile networks for mountain rescue crews in Wales to Nokia’s AI-powered drone network for Swiss emergency services. But a fundamental problem has persisted: how do you figure out exactly how many drones to…
Discover how Luke Maximo Bell’s custom endurance drone flew for 3.5 hours. Learn the engineering secrets of semi-solid state batteries and 40-inch propellers.
Two weeks ago, we reported that Helsing and Stark Defence had beaten Rheinmetall for €600 million in German loitering munition contracts. That number was based on Bloomberg’s reporting. Now the Financial Times has obtained the actual procurement documents submitted to Germany’s budget committee, and the real numbers tell a very different story. The potential total…
Four years ago, Ukraine was begging Western allies for basic weapons deliveries. Now Zelenskyy is announcing drone production lines on German soil and 10 weapons export offices spanning the Baltics to Northern Europe. The speed of this reversal is hard to overstate. Here is what you need to know: Quantum Systems and Frontline Robotics launch…
As the drone and robotics industries continue to evolve at a breakneck pace, staying ahead of the curve means being in the room where it happens. From the shifting regulatory landscape and the rise of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) to the latest breakthroughs in AI-driven autonomy and tactical defense, 2026 is shaping up to be…
Paladin Drones, the Houston-based Drone as First Responder company that built much of its business on modified DJI hardware, just revealed the Knighthawk 2.0 at the World Defense Show in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The new drone is NDAA-compliant, built in partnership with Portuguese NATO-certified manufacturer Beyond Vision, and clearly designed to open doors that DJI-based…
One email with the drone news that matters — DJI, FAA, public safety, and everything in between, straight from the newsroom. No spam, no fluff.
