Defense

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Aug 22

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A missile ignites and climbs from a Lockheed Martin launcher mounted on an uncrewed surface vessel in open ocean swells

Defense · Lockheed Martin

Saildrone Fires First Missiles From Its Robot Ship at US Navy's RIMPAC

Saildrone and Lockheed Martin fired two JAGM missiles from a Surveyor USV at RIMPAC 2026, the first missile launch from the company's uncrewed ships.

Haye KestelooAug 224 min read

Auterion drone swarm software coordinating multiple uncrewed aircraft as a single AI-guided strike formation

Counter-Drone

Northcom Cannot Stop A Homeland Drone Swarm. Its Deputy Commander Said So.

Asked if he could defeat a drone swarm launched inside U.S. borders, Northcom's deputy commander said no. Nine days earlier, five autonomous drones hit a tank in Maryland.

Haye KestelooAug 19

Ukraine

Ukraine and Netherlands Scale Drone Line to Target 50,000 Russian Losses Per Month

The numbers coming out of Ukraine’s Drone Line program in early 2026 are striking. In January and February, more than 1,000 specialized drone crews accounted for one in every three Russian soldiers killed on the front. Now Ukraine wants to make that ratio permanent, and the Netherlands is helping fund it. Here’s what you need…

Haye KestelooMar 1

Ukraine Signs Drone Production Deal With Norway As NATO Allies Race To Access Battle-Tested Tech

Airbus

Europe’s E5 Defense Ministers Back LEAP Program to Build Low-Cost Autonomous Drones Inspired by Ukraine

Europe’s five biggest military spenders are formalizing what Ukraine’s drone operators figured out the hard way: cheap autonomous systems beat expensive traditional ones. The UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Poland are expected to announce a new joint drone and missile development program as early as Friday, February 20, during a defense ministers’ meeting in Poland,…

Haye KestelooFeb 19

Israel

Ondas Targets Rafael Drone Unit in Israeli Defense Push

US based Ondas Holdings is seeking to acquire Aeronautics, the unmanned aerial vehicle subsidiary of Rafael Advanced Defense Systems

Rafael SuárezFeb 19

Department of Defense

Pentagon DIU wants containerized drone launchers that store, launch, and recover swarms on command

The Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) just published a solicitation for something the U.S. military has needed for years but never had: a box that can store drones, launch them in mass, recover them, recharge them, and do it all over again with almost no humans involved. The program is called the Containerized Autonomous Drone…

Haye KestelooFeb 7

French Drone Maker Harmattan AI Targets $1B Valuation in Defense Boom

Ukraine

Dassault’s $200M Harmattan Bet Completes France’s AI Defense Trifecta

Four months ago, we reported that Paris-based Harmattan AI was seeking a billion-dollar valuation and was in talks with Dassault Aviation. The aerospace giant just called, and they’re bringing $200 million to the table. The Series B round values Harmattan at $1.4 billion, officially making it France’s newest defense unicorn and confirming what we’ve been…

Haye KestelooJan 15

Ukraine

Ukraine’s New Drone Is Basically an Aerial Interceptor on Energy Drinks

A new high speed drone interceptor is now actively hunting enemy UAVs over Ukraine, and it does so at a pace that would leave most quadcopters gasping for air. The system is called AIR SPEED, and it represents the latest evolution in Ukraine’s rapidly maturing counter drone ecosystem, where speed, simplicity, and frontline practicality matter…

Rafael SuárezJan 7

Defense

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