Autonomous Systems & Counter-Drone

BAE Systems confirmed involvement in a potential acquisition of Dutch drone tracking specialist Robin Radar Systems and announced a new collaboration with Arteris and SiFive focused on secure microelectronics for U.S. defence projects. The microelectronics partnership is part of a wider U.S. programme aimed at supply chain security in defence-focused chip design. BAE Systems is a £52.6b aerospace and defense group with operations across the United States, the United Kingdom, the Middle East, Australia, Saudi Arabia and wider Europe. The next test is whether these initiatives turn into identifiable contract activity, such as BAE Systems being named as the acquirer when Robin Radar is formally sold or being listed on larger Trusted and Assured Microelectronics follow on awards. Clear order wins that reference drone detection, secure SoCs or related U.S. programmes would show these announcements are feeding into the £75b plus backlog rather than staying at the pilot stage.

NextNav Inc. announced in October 2026 a partnership with AiRANACULUS to advance integrated sensing and communications across its licensed lower 900 MHz spectrum. The collaboration combines NextNav's ground-based 5G-powered 3D PNT network with AiRANACULUS's signal processing technology to enhance drone detection and counter-unmanned aircraft capabilities. The companies aim to reduce infrastructure needs for wide-area sensing while supporting digital airspace management and critical national security applications. The tie-up follows NextNav's August 2026 selection of Tiami Networks as a sensing ecosystem partner for 5G counter UAS trials in the same Santa Clara footprint, with both projects framing a catalyst around ISAC-based drone detection. NextNav's narrative projects $2.8 million revenue and $336.4 thousand earnings by 2029, assuming revenue will decrease by 11.5% per year and that earnings will rise by about $141.6 million from -$141.3 million today, while the central risk remains that FCC timing and commercialization of the 900 MHz asset could slip.

Novra Technologies Inc. announced that its subsidiary International Datacasting Corporation has qualified across all five streams of the Government of Canada's new Defence Drone Initiative Marketplace. The qualification positions Novra, through IDC, to compete for future Department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces contracts involving communications, data delivery, systems integration, testing and innovation for uncrewed and autonomous systems. IDC qualified in all five DDI Marketplace streams: UxS and Counter-UxS Systems, Communications and Cyber Systems, Integration and Engineering Services, Test and Training, and Innovation and Experimentation. Launched in July 2026 and led collaboratively by the DND and the Defence Investment Agency, the DDI is designed to accelerate the development, testing and production of uncrewed and autonomous systems for the Canadian Armed Forces and the Canadian Coast Guard. Novra noted that qualification under the DDI Supply Arrangement does not constitute a contract award or guarantee future business, and that individual opportunities will be subject to applicable Government of Canada procurement processes.

AeroVironment has received a US$464.8 million US Army production contract for the Enduring High Energy Laser program, marking its first major US military laser production deal. The award covers directed energy weapon systems intended for fielded use, moving the company beyond its core uncrewed aircraft focus into operational high energy laser deployments within US defense programs. The contract supports AeroVironment's push toward higher margin product franchises such as LOCUST, Titan and Switchblade, even as the company spends heavily on new facilities and remains free cash flow negative in FY27. It does not resolve the company's existing profitability challenges or recent losses in its Space, Cyber and Directed Energy segment. Investors will be watching AeroVironment's combined funded and unfunded backlog, currently flagged at roughly US$2.8 billion, in the next few quarterly updates to see whether directed energy and counter UAS awards are building a more durable pipeline or simply offsetting cancellations elsewhere.

OKSI and Qualcomm Government Technologies, Inc., a division of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., announced a collaboration to deploy OKSI's OMNISCIENCE autonomy software portfolio on Qualcomm technologies. OMNISCIENCE delivers AI/ML-enabled capabilities through computer vision, including visual navigation, object detection and recognition, and mission execution, purpose-built to bring autonomy to unmanned platforms operating in complex, communications-constrained environments. The software portfolio has been optimized for the Qualcomm QCS8550 processor and is designed to scale across Qualcomm Technologies' broader IoT processor portfolio, giving platform developers and defense system integrators a flexible, production-ready path to deploying edge AI capabilities at scale. The collaboration will be showcased at the Association of the United States Army Annual Meeting 2026, taking place Oct. 12-14 in Washington, D.C. OKSI CEO Chris HolmesParker said that with OMNISCIENCE on the Qualcomm QCS8550 processor, autonomy stops being a multiyear development program and becomes a design-in decision, while Kim Koro, Senior Vice President of Qualcomm Government Technologies, said the two companies are helping move autonomy beyond demonstrations toward deployable, mission-ready capabilities.

Safe Pro Group Inc. announced preliminary, unaudited revenue expectations for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, projecting revenue to increase by over 2,300% to more than $2.5 million, compared with $101,422 in the third quarter of 2025. For the nine months ended September 30, 2026, the company expects revenue to increase by over 1,200% to more than $5.0 million compared with $378,977 in the same period of 2025. The growth is driven by multiple U.S. Government subcontract awards supporting the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force, including a $1.3 million subcontract from a U.S. defense prime contractor to integrate real-time AI threat detection onto autonomous unmanned ground vehicles and a $780,000 U.S. Army award for a package including its NODE AI edge-processing systems and Blue UAS drones. Third quarter 2026 revenue represents an increase of approximately 88% on a sequential basis compared with the second quarter of 2026. Safe Pro continues to deliver against U.S. Army and recent government contract awards for its AI software powering edge-based compute solutions, representing more than $5 million in aggregate awarded contract value year-to-date.

Lantronix President and CEO Saleel Awsare will attend the Association of the U.S. Army 2026 Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington, D.C., from Oct. 12 to 14, where he will hold meetings with investors, defense customers and partners. The company said its unmanned systems business grew from a minimal contribution in fiscal 2025 to $12.6 million in revenue in fiscal 2026. Lantronix also cited the recent Blue UAS Framework listing of its Open-Q 8550CS System-on-Module, which expands access to U.S. defense and government programs, and demand tied to the Department of War's $1.1 billion Drone Dominance Program as well as European and beyond-visual-line-of-sight markets. The company reported more than 30 active engagements across defense, commercial, public safety and counter-UAS, with customers and partners including Sightline, AVT Australia, Swarmer and Unusual Machines. Awsare said customer demand is moving Lantronix up the value chain toward integrated edge AI for autonomous systems.

Federal Ammunition, Mossberg and Palladyne AI Corp. announced the joint development of SwarmShot, a modular autonomous airborne counter-unmanned aircraft system designed to turn compatible drones into reusable air-to-air interceptors operating as a collaborative kinetic defensive swarm. SwarmShot will combine Federal's specialized counter-UAS shotshell ammunition, a lightweight Mossberg weapon module purpose-engineered for airborne operation, and Palladyne AI's IntelliSwarm autonomy system, which pairs BRAIN avionics with SwarmOS collaborative autonomy software. The system will first be developed as a modular mission add-on for Gremlin-X, Palladyne AI's Group 1 quadcopter mini-bomber, after which the companies plan to offer SwarmShot to other manufacturers as an integration kit for compatible unmanned aircraft. Federal will lead ammunition design and terminal-effect optimization, drawing on its recent U.S. Army counter-UAS ammunition contract, while Mossberg leads the airborne weapon module and Palladyne AI leads UAS integration, fire control, terminal-intercept autonomy and multi-interceptor coordination. The effort is a defensive application of Palladyne AI's predictive autonomy collaborative swarming capability, recently deployed with the U.S. Army at Project Convergence Capstone 6 and other Army exercises. Development schedules, potential customer engagements and financial terms were not disclosed.

Booz Allen Hamilton announced in late September 2026 that Michael D. Brasseur, a 26-year U.S. Navy veteran and former Saab Inc. Chief Strategy Officer, joined the firm as an executive vice president to lead its defense technology business and guide partnership and innovation efforts in robotics, autonomy, and AI. Brasseur was the founding Commodore of the Navy's Task Force 59, and the hire aligns Booz Allen's leadership with operational experience in fielding unmanned and AI-enabled systems for defense missions. The move follows the July 2026 expansion of the Vellox AI powered cyber defense suite, and together the two developments underline the company's ambition to shift more work toward higher margin, tech enabled offerings. Booz Allen Hamilton Holding's narrative projects $12.5 billion revenue and $758.8 million earnings by 2029, requiring 4.1% yearly revenue growth and an earnings decrease of $13.2 million from $772.0 million today, with forecasts yielding a $85.23 fair value, a 27% upside to its current price. Some of the lowest ranked analysts are more cautious, assuming only about US$12.0 billion of revenue and US$782.1 million of earnings by 2029, and worry that heavier contract risk on AI programs could blunt the benefits of hires like Brasseur.

Pete Hegseth, the US Secretary of Defense, announced the launch of Project Meridian, a research program into the technology and warfare models of the future, bringing in Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey, founder of Anduril Industries, and Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the US House of Representatives, as leaders of the research effort. Hegseth unveiled the plan during a State of the Force speech at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia, saying the project would focus on finding, developing and fielding new weapons and systems to meet the forms of warfare the US military may face in the coming decades. Musk's SpaceX and Luckey's Anduril are both major contractors for the US Department of Defense. The project will be overseen by Emil Michael, a former Uber executive who currently serves as a senior technology official at the Pentagon. Hegseth did not disclose further details on the budget, timeline or structure of the project. Beyond Project Meridian, Hegseth also announced the establishment of an Autonomous Warfare Command to oversee the management and deployment of US drones and military robotic systems, and said he wants major US bases to be able to produce their own energy to preserve operational capability if the country's power grid is hit by a cyberattack. He also announced plans to set up an office for religious affairs for the military and to build partnerships with academic institutions to expand cadet training programs, with the first group of institutions taking part including Liberty University, Hillsdale College, Louisiana State University, Mississippi State University and Tuskegee University. At the same time, the US Department of Defense plans to build a new base inside the country for the first time in four decades, with state governments able to compete to host it; the base is expected to accommodate several thousand personnel, and each site could cover several hundred thousand acres. The plan comes as the Pentagon is considering reducing US troop levels in Europe, with Hegseth saying the military will add tens of thousands more personnel overall while shifting its focus back to homeland defense and the Western Hemisphere.

Powaras, a US drone startup set to go public through a merger with a company backed by President Trump's eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., and his second son, Eric Trump, aims to bring technology developed overseas, including in Ukraine, to the United States to meet growing demand from the US Department of Defense. Company executives disclosed this in an interview with Reuters. The company plans to expand its business through acquisitions, partnerships with overseas firms, and manufacturing within the United States, aiming to become a partner that brings overseas-developed military technology to the US and produces it domestically. President Brett Velicovich said the company aims to become a "one-stop solution" for the Department of Defense by offering overseas technology under a "US company face," and explained that it is in talks with Ukrainian defense technology companies and wants to add capabilities such as long-range strike drones. Powaras, founded a year ago, plans to merge in early October with Nasdaq-listed Aureus Greenway Holdings, and according to regulatory filings, the Trump brothers will hold an indirect 9.9% ownership stake in the combined new company through the investment fund American Ventures. Powaras's business is still at an early stage, and as of early 2026 it had no revenue-generating operations; earlier this year it assembled a product lineup of aerial and maritime drones through acquisitions, and its revenue for the January-March quarter was 1.2 million dollars. The company recently announced it had won a contract with the US Air Force worth up to 90 million dollars and a 22.3 million dollar commercial contract to protect energy infrastructure in the Middle East for an undisclosed customer.

The U.S. Navy has doubled its fleet capacity to operate the MQ-25A Stingray unmanned aircraft system over a five-month period by standing up a second operational MD-5C Ground Control Station powered by Lockheed Martin Skunk Works MDCX. USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) received the first operational MD-5C in March 2026, followed by USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) in August 2026. The MD-5C is a highly complex system-of-systems that includes the government Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence network, Lockheed Martin's MDCX software and hardware, and additional government-produced ancillary equipment. Within the Ground Control Station, MDCX is the mission planning and execution software that enables Navy operators to command and control the MQ-25A Stingray, extending carrier air wing reach and freeing manned aircraft for higher-priority missions. Capt. Daniel Fucito, PMA-268 program manager, said the two operational unmanned air warfare centers aboard CVN 71 and CVN 76 bring the Navy closer to integrating unmanned carrier aviation into the fleet, while MDCX Program Manager Ben Tongue said the team has doubled the number of U.S. Navy carriers ready to fly the MQ-25A Stingray in five months.

Ondas announced on Wednesday that it launched Dronebuster REACH, a long-range counter-drone system, with the first unit contracted to the Office of Naval Research. REACH uses electronic attacks to disrupt drones at longer ranges and higher power, extending the company's existing Dronebuster product line, and integrates with Ondas's detection and command-and-control systems for a layered counter-drone setup. Ondas said its Dronebuster systems have been deployed in more than 50 countries, with over 3K units delivered. On the market side, the stock traded near $7.50.

DroneShield secured access to a three-year U.S. government contract vehicle worth up to $500 million, sending its shares up 9% to a one-month high. The Australian counter-drone technology company said it was awarded an Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity contract supporting Joint Interagency Task Force 401's Domestic Shield initiative, with a maximum value of $500 million over three years. The company stressed that the $500 million is the maximum value of the contract vehicle rather than an immediate order or revenue award, and that the vehicle provides a streamlined procurement pathway for rapid deployment of counter-unmanned aircraft systems across the United States. The award expands DroneShield's exposure to U.S. government procurement and follows a $24.9 million JIATF-401 contract announced in June, which included an initial $19.3 million award plus options. DroneShield has also been installing its DroneSentry-X Mk2 systems under the earlier JIATF-401 program, with acceptance by the U.S. military announced earlier this month.

Codan sharply raised its first-half profit outlook on strong demand from drone manufacturers, sending its shares up 18.85% to a record high of A$61.79. The Australian communications technology company said it expects net profit after tax of at least A$160 million for the six months through December, more than double the A$71.2 million reported a year earlier and close to the A$175.2 million it generated for the full year ended June. The stronger outlook was driven by rising demand for electronic components used in unmanned drones deployed in conflicts including Russia-Ukraine and the Middle East, with Codan supplying a radio-frequency component that enables high-speed video and data transmission to about 50 drone manufacturers across the U.S. and Europe. Codan said demand from conflict regions was exceptionally strong, and its Minelab metal-detection business also started the financial year strongly, helped by sales of its Gold Monster 2000 and GPZ8000 detectors amid a higher gold price. The company said it could not provide a full-year profit forecast because demand from conflict regions is difficult to predict beyond roughly three months, and it is working to address potential supply-chain constraints amid the elevated demand.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions and GE Aerospace announced the successful first ignition of the GEK800 Serial Number 1 turbofan engine on September 21, a milestone in a program the U.S. military has designated the F143-ZZ-100. The test, conducted at Kratos' X-58 facility, achieved a 100% success rate for the development phase and keeps the affordable, high-performance propulsion system on schedule for advanced cruise missiles and uncrewed aerial systems. For Kratos, the milestone supports a Government Solutions segment that posted $379.7 million in Q2 2026 revenue, up 22.0% organically, with Turbine Technologies up 43.3% organically, a consolidated book-to-bill ratio of 1.1x and $2.084 billion in backlog, as the company ramps full-year 2026 revenue guidance to $1.750–$1.810 billion. GE Aerospace's Defense & Propulsion Technologies segment reported $3.4 billion in Q2 2026 revenue, up 16%, and raised full-year DPT operating profit expectations to $1.6–$1.7 billion. Kratos also faces cash conversion pressure, with $11.0 million in Q2 2026 operating cash outflow and $18.9 million in negative free cash flow, while GE's DPT margins face ongoing pressure from investments and inflation.

Amprius Technologies shares rose 11% Monday after the company secured a grant of up to $75 million from the U.S. Department of War to retrofit an existing domestic production line for high-energy density battery cells. The grant, awarded through the DoW's Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment program, will fund the conversion of a U.S.-based electric vehicle battery production line operated by a major South Korean manufacturer to produce batteries for unmanned aerial systems. The retrofitted line is expected to have the capacity to produce 12 million Amprius cells annually when completed in early 2028, with the cells intended to meet domestic sourcing requirements of the National Defense Authorization Act. The total conversion project is expected to cost approximately $100 million, including in-kind investments from Amprius and its South Korean partner. CEO Tom Stepien said the DoW grant is intended to establish a primary source of domestic, NDAA-compliant battery production, adding that the company's technology combined with its South Korean partner's U.S. manufacturing prowess positions Amprius to accelerate adoption of standardized, high-performance pouch cells in a fast-growing market.

President Lai Ching-te, Taiwan's leader, said Taiwan needs to tighten cooperation with democratic countries in developing drone technology, which is crucial to waging modern warfare, amid rising military pressure from China. Speaking today at the groundbreaking ceremony for a new drone development center in Chiayi in southern Taiwan, he said that from the battlefields of Ukraine to security in the Indo-Pacific region, drones have become a key fighting force in modern national defense. He called on Taiwan to work with democratic countries to develop a secure and resilient drone supply chain in order to support peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific. His remarks came as the Taiwanese government pushes ahead with military upgrades and higher defense budgets as one of its main policies, after China stepped up military pressure on Taiwan earlier this month. Taiwan's Cabinet proposed adding 145.7 billion Taiwan dollars, about 4.59 billion US dollars, to this year's defense budget. The budget covers the procurement of drones and missile interception systems, including more than 600 surveillance and coastal patrol drones, more than 40,000 coastal attack drones, and more than 100 explosive-laden unmanned boats. Lai said Taiwan has strengths in semiconductors, information and communications technology, and high-precision manufacturing bases that can be leveraged to develop a drone industry.

GE Aerospace, a unit of General Electric, and Kratos completed a successful ignition test of the new GEK800 cruise missile engine. The milestone advances propulsion systems designed for long range cruise missiles in support of Department of War programs, and highlights fresh engineering and manufacturing capabilities within GE Aerospace focused on high performance, cost focused defense propulsion. The GEK800 ignition ties directly into General Electric's Defense & Propulsion Technologies backlog above US$30b and supports the catalyst around acceleration of next generation engine programs such as adaptive cycle engines and CCA propulsion. For the milestone to matter to shareholders, the next stretch of the GEK800 program needs to hold schedule and convert into volume work, with formal program decisions from the Department of War, a shift from single engine trials to a broader qualification campaign, and signs that GE can fold any eventual production into its FLIGHT DECK supply chain model without adding margin pressure to the wider defense portfolio.

The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen revealed that it intercepted 2 guided missiles and 2 drones fired into Saudi Arabia by the Iran-backed Houthi group. The two missiles were headed toward the city of Khamis Mushait, while the two drones were headed toward Riyadh. Civil defense authorities issued warning alerts overnight for the Khamis Mushait and Abha areas, but no alert was issued for Riyadh. The attack came after the Houthis announced a maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia in July, targeting Saudi ships in the Red Sea, creating pressure on global oil supplies and risk to Red Sea shipping routes, while navigation through the Strait of Hormuz remains largely blocked. Amid the situation, military commanders of Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Turkey, which are defense allies, met in Riyadh just a few hours earlier to review the threats Saudi Arabia is facing, after the three countries signed the joint Mecca defense agreement in August, which states that an armed attack on any one country will be considered an attack on all. Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman said he discussed with Asim Munir, Pakistan's army chief, in Riyadh and confirmed the continuation of joint cooperation to counter attacks under the agreement.

Yemen's Houthi group said on the evening of Thursday, September 24, that it had fired missiles and sent drones to attack highly sensitive targets in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, as well as facilities belonging to Aramco in Yanbu, a Red Sea port city. It marks a new round of long-range attacks amid an increasingly intense conflict with Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron said France is preparing to send military equipment to help protect Yanbu, a key industrial and energy hub on Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coast. In other conflicts, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said ending the war that has dragged on for seven months depends on a decision by the United States, while China is pushing all parties to reduce tensions. At the 81st regular session of the United Nations General Assembly, Xinhua News Agency reported that representatives of several countries walked out of the chamber in protest while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered his remarks during the general debate. Chinese President Xi Jinping said at the White House on Thursday, September 24, that both China and the United States have the capacity and the responsibility to develop and manage artificial intelligence technology for the benefit of humanity, and must ensure that such technology always remains under human control. Meanwhile, U.S. airlines came out against the idea of adding passenger flights between the United States and China after President Xi Jinping proposed that the two countries increase direct flights. U.S. airlines argued that adding flights would further favor Chinese carriers, since they can still use flight routes through Russian airspace. In financial markets, the yield on 10-year Japanese government bonds jumped to 3.115% today, the highest level since August 1996. And Denmark's defense intelligence service warned that Russia may carry out limited military attacks on NATO member states in the coming months, assessing that the risk has increased although it remains at a low level.

The TISCO Economic and Strategic Analysis Center, or TISCO ESU, assesses that global financial markets are entering a phase of capital competition, as governments around the world need to borrow heavily to expand defense budgets while private-sector big tech and hyperscaler firms seek to raise enormous sums to accelerate the buildout of data center infrastructure, chip fabrication plants, AI facilities, and power plants. This is pushing interest rates and government bond yields up by roughly 0.60 to 0.90 percent. Komson Prapakpol, head of the TISCO Economic and Strategic Analysis Center, said the United States plans to expand its defense budget from 1 trillion dollars to 1.5 trillion dollars, an increase of 50 percent, while Japan aims to raise defense spending from below 2 percent to 3.5 percent of GDP, the highest level since the period from 1970 to 1980. Germany and France are also accelerating increases in their security budgets. Thanaphat Thanachat, an analyst at TISCO ESU, said the United States has public debt exceeding 100 percent of GDP, or more than 40 trillion dollars, and a fiscal deficit as high as 6 percent of GDP per year, driving its interest burden to double that of four to five years ago. France's public debt has risen by nearly 20 percent of GDP between 2019 and 2025, with an annual deficit of 5 percent of GDP. As for the interest rate path of the three major central banks, TISCO ESU expects the Federal Reserve to raise rates one more time, by about 0.25 percent, at its December meeting, ending at 4.25 percent, and to hold at that level through 2027 before cutting in 2028. The European Central Bank is expected to raise rates one more time, by about 0.25 percent, in December, while the Bank of Japan is expected to gradually keep raising rates until they reach 1.75 percent in mid-2027. The yield on 10-year U.S. government bonds is expected in the base case to hold steady at 5 percent through the end of 2026, but if the Federal Reserve fails to control inflation, the worst case could see the bond yield rise to 6 percent.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said that ending the war, now in its seventh month, depends on a decision by the United States. Speaking in an interview with Fox News broadcast on Thursday, September 24, he said America must choose whether to end this, after being asked whether the war could end by the end of this year. Fighting continues, with Houthi forces launching a barrage of missiles and drones at targets in Saudi Arabia on the morning of September 25. Saudi authorities said they intercepted six missiles and issued alerts in Mecca, Jeddah and Yanbu. Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan are preparing an emergency meeting of military commanders to discuss ways to assist Saudi Arabia under the joint Mecca defense agreement, and Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti called on forces to be ready to fight the Houthis until the group is removed from power. Pezeshkian said the Houthis must take responsibility for their own actions and that Iran is not in a state of war with Saudi Arabia. The Iran issue was also raised at the US-China summit in Washington, where Chinese President Xi Jinping, during a three-day visit to the United States, discussed a range of issues with President Donald Trump, including trade, artificial intelligence, Taiwan and Iran. Zhai Jun, China's special envoy for the Middle East, said the situation in the Middle East was one of the key issues discussed by the US and Chinese leaders, and said the shared views of both sides are important for defusing the conflict. Trump wants China to help pressure Iran to find a way to end the war, after the United States and Iran returned to indirect talks on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Iranian officials have signaled that the Strait of Hormuz could reopen within seven days if the United States begins to ease its maritime blockade of Iranian ports.

Yemen's Houthi group said on the evening of Thursday, September 24, that it had fired missiles and sent drones to attack highly sensitive targets in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, as well as a facility belonging to Aramco in Yanbu, a Red Sea port city. It marks a new round of long-range attacks amid an intensifying conflict with Saudi Arabia. A statement carried on Al-Masirah television, which is run by the Houthi group, said Yahya Saree, the group's military spokesman, announced that Houthi armed forces carried out two separate operations, one targeting an area in Riyadh and the other targeting the Aramco facility in Yanbu, using ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and a number of drones, and claimed that both operations achieved their objectives. Saree, however, did not specify the target in Riyadh and gave no details on damage or the number of dead and wounded. Saree added that this round of attacks was in response to Saudi forces continuing to carry out airstrikes and fire missiles at areas controlled by the Houthis in Yemen, and claimed that Saudi forces had carried out a total of 1,018 airstrikes and missile launches since the latest round of conflict began, causing civilian deaths and injuries as well as damage to infrastructure. The Houthi spokesman confirmed that the group will continue its retaliatory operations as long as Saudi military operations continue, reiterating the policy Saree described as escalating violence in response to escalation. Xinhua reported that the latest retaliatory attacks reflect the widening confrontation between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, with both sides stepping up long-range attacks in recent weeks alongside increasingly intense ground fighting in Yemen.

It has emerged that negotiators for the United States and Iran are exploring a phased agreement aimed at Iran reopening the Strait of Hormuz and the United States lifting its naval blockade of Iranian ports. According to people familiar with the talks, the two countries are pursuing discussions aimed at breaking the deadlock on the 24th, on the sidelines of related meetings of the United Nations General Assembly being held in New York, with Qatari officials mediating the negotiations. The phased agreement is expected to take a form similar to a memorandum of understanding signed by the United States and Iran in mid-June, but the ceasefire that was established, albeit precariously, on the back of that memorandum collapsed just a few weeks later. Reuters was first to report on the talks over a phased agreement. A White House official said President Trump remains open to dialogue with Iran, while stressing that the United States has no need to negotiate, as intensified sanctions and the naval blockade are pressuring the Iranian economy and the United States holds the upper hand. Meanwhile, a spokesman for Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi armed group said in a statement on Telegram that it had attacked Saudi Arabia twice using ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones. The first attack targeted a key site in the Saudi capital Riyadh, and the second targeted a Saudi Aramco facility in Yanbu on the Red Sea coast, according to the spokesman.

Attaullah Tarar, Pakistan's Minister of Information, said on September 24 that the Pakistani military carried out airstrikes on 10 sites in Afghanistan, claiming they were areas used to launch and store drones, after Pakistan's air defence system detected drones sent from Afghan territory the previous day. Tarar said some of the drones were used to attack Pakistan but were tracked and destroyed before reaching their targets, after which the military carried out airstrikes and precise drone strikes on the 10 related locations. He confirmed that the operation was limited to specified military targets and warned that if the Taliban government takes any further action Pakistan views as provocation, Pakistan will respond with firm and decisive measures. However, the Taliban government denied sending drones to attack Pakistan on September 23. Two Taliban spokesmen said Pakistan's strikes today took place in several areas of Khost and Paktia provinces in southeastern Afghanistan, but that there were no deaths from the incidents. The latest strikes come amid tensions between the two countries over armed groups, with Pakistan accusing Afghanistan of harbouring Islamist militants who carry out cross-border attacks, while the Taliban government denies the accusations and says the problem of armed groups in Pakistan is an internal matter. Conflict between the two countries flared again after an attack on a police operations centre in northwestern Pakistan last week that killed at least 24 people, following nearly three months of relative calm. Earlier in the same week, Pakistan's government said it had carried out airstrikes along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and killed 28 militants, while the Taliban accused the strikes of killing three Afghan civilians. Tensions between the two countries had previously escalated to the point of more than 400 deaths in March, after Pakistan carried out airstrikes in Kabul, which the Taliban government said targeted a drug rehabilitation centre.

Swarmer, Inc has signed a nonbinding memorandum of understanding with Vectus Air Defense Systems, a company in which Swarmer holds a 20% interest, to manufacture, sell and deploy end-to-end air defense systems in eligible markets, subject to export-control, sanctions, procurement and other governmental requirements. Under the memorandum, Vectus has confirmed its intent to purchase and deploy at least 40 Swarmer-built systems in year one and 80 or more in year two following the start of production at a facility Swarmer intends to establish in Poland. Swarmer U.S. CEO and president Alex Fink said the systems use combat-proven Gatling-type rotary cannons capable of firing 20mm rounds at up to 6,000 rounds per minute as the last line of defense, and he estimates each system will retail at approximately $5 million to $6 million. Erik Prince, who serves as both Vectus CEO and Swarmer board chairman, said the systems should see high demand because they are portable, affordable and designed to destroy targets on impact. Final quantities, pricing, financing, specifications and delivery schedules remain subject to definitive agreements.

XTEND AI Robotics has been awarded Phase III of the U.S. Special Operations Command Modular Kinetic Lethal Drone program, advancing its precision-strike unmanned systems work for U.S. Special Operations Forces. The award is separate from, and follows, XTEND's recent selection as a top performer in the Close-Quarters Battle segment of Gauntlet II under the U.S. Department of War's Drone Dominance Program, where the 10 companies selected are finalists for prototype contracts and awards are not guaranteed. The MKLD solution combines XTEND's Striker, Scorpio 500 and Scorpio 1000 platforms with a common Ground Control Station and the company's XOS operating system, designed to give small tactical units modular, recoverable and reusable precision-strike capabilities across indoor, confined-space, urban and outdoor environments. CEO and Co-Founder Aviv Shapira called Phase III an important milestone in the company's work with the U.S. Special Operations community, saying the focus is on adaptable robotic capabilities that extend Warfighters' reach while shifting risk from the operator to unmanned systems. Phase III builds on previous USSOCOM investment, development, testing and operational feedback and will further mature the MKLD capability.

AEVEX Corp. announced Specter, a new jet-powered autonomous platform under development that will expand its unmanned aircraft systems portfolio with a high-speed, turbojet-powered one-way attack design. The platform is being developed in collaboration with advanced manufacturing company Divergent, whose DAPS digital manufacturing platform is being incorporated into Specter's development to support scalable production and rapid iteration. Specter features a modular, swappable nose section designed to accommodate kinetic, non-kinetic, electronic warfare, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and future payloads, along with a turbojet propulsion architecture enabling both ground-launched and air-launched variants. AEVEX said the design draws on lessons from thousands of operational deployments and its CompassX autonomy architecture. "Specter reflects our lessons learned on capability from delivering thousands of autonomous systems in theater," said Manan Patel, Chief Technology Officer at AEVEX. "We are not optimizing for a fixed requirement, we are building an architecture that adapts."