The U.S. Department of Defense has awarded a $50 million contract to U.S.-German tech firm Auterion to deliver 33,000 AI-powered drone kits to Ukraine, the Financial Times reported on July 27.
Auterion CEO Lorenz Meier, who confirmed the deal in a company press release, called the scale of the contract “unprecedented.”
“We have previously shipped thousands of our AI strike systems to Ukraine, but this new deployment increases our support more than tenfold. This is not only significant for Ukraine’s defense but also represents a substantial advancement in drone warfare technology,” Meier said.
The drone kits, known as Skynode, transform manually operated drones into autonomous systems. Each includes an onboard computer with AI-based vision, encrypted communications, and anti-jamming capabilities.
Drones equipped with Skynode can track moving targets up to one kilometer away, according to Auterion.
“Our technology provides allies and partners with advanced capabilities that they can integrate into their existing industry, enhancing their defensive capabilities while leveraging the manufacturing prowess of high volume drone manufacturers,” Meier explained.
Auterion said shipments under the new contract are set to begin in 2025.
The Pentagon contract comes as Russia increases aerial assaults using Iranian-designed Shahed drones. On July 9, Russian forces launched over 700 aerial weapons in a single day.
Russia recently unveiled new footage of its massive drone production facility in Yelabuga, Tatarstan, as part of its push to intensify unmanned aerial attacks on Ukraine. Ukrainian officials warn that Russia’s drone output could soon reach 1,000 units per day.
In response, Ukraine is expanding domestic production of interceptor drones. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the goal is to manufacture enough for 1,000 daily launches.
“A plan has been approved to reach production of 500-1,000 interceptor drones per day. The deadline has been set and achieving this is the personal responsibility of every official involved,” Zelenskyy said in a video address last week.
