Anti-drone tech dominates Pitch Day at the 2026 UAS Summit & Expo

A lucrative segment is booming within the unmanned aerial system (UAS) industry: anti-drone defense technology — and its epicenter is in the Red River Valley.

Propelled by increased US military spending, unauthorized drone activity near critical infrastructure and drone usage in criminal activity, the global counter-UAS market could reach $8.8 billion in 2026 and top $31 billion by 2032, according to market intelligence firm Stratview Research.

The UAS industry struggles to accurately forecast its own economic worth, but if Stratview’s estimates hold, the anti-drone segment could increase from around a fifth of the total UAS market to nearly three-fifths over the next five years.  

The trend was apparent during the annual UAS Summit & Expo, held earlier this month at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, ND. This year’s summit drew nearly 800 attendees and 67 exhibitors, making it the largest gathering in its 20-year history. 

It’s no coincidence the conference calls the city home. North Dakota has invested more than $79 million in UAS innovation. Grand Forks has a robust local talent pipeline from the University of North Dakota (UND) and public-private partnerships such as GrandSKY, a research hub located on the Grand Forks Air Force Base.

“A big issue in this industry is the supply chain,” said JC Van Liere, CEO of Grand Forks-based KAZE Drones. “If we can build everything in-house here in Grand Forks … it takes us out of those critical components in the supply chain.”

Van Liere spoke from the stage at one of the conference’s two hour-long pitch sessions, which were sponsored by the Grand Forks Region Economic Development Council and UAS Angel Network and were designed to give UAS startup founders an opportunity to connect with investors and fellow entrepreneurs. 

Organizers received about 16 applicants and selected six finalists with market-ready solutions, according to Delore Zimmerman, economic development strategist at Praxis Strategy Group, and moderator for the pitch sessions — five of whom are building counter-UAS and defense-related drone technology.

Increased demand from the armed forces correlates with increased demand for domestic manufacturing, both to reduce cost and to comply with the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Van Liere’s KAZE is directly tackling the joint challenges of cost reduction and regulatory compliance.

Here’s a closer look at that firm and the five other startups that took the stage.

KAZE Drones

This Grand Forks startup — a service-disabled veteran-owned small business — is developing interceptor drones intended for defense applications.

Van Liere explained that Ukrainian interceptor drones cost approximately $2,500 to manufacture; in contrast, comparable American-made drones currently run around $120,000 each. They came to the conference seeking partners to scale production at lower cost. 

Ironaxe Corporation

Lexington, MA-based startup Ironaxe Corporation is developing a multi-domain counter-UAS platform. The company came out of stealth mode in July, after spending several years developing its intellectual property.

“It’s an exciting market from a business perspective,” Schmidt said from the conference stage. “I kind of wish it wasn’t necessary, but the world has changed, and we need to have counter-UAS solutions.”

ATP Gov

Elk Grove, IlIL-based Federal IT contractor ATP Gov is bringing Ukrainian-developed defense drone technology to the US.

The Ukrainian government has empowered engineers and entrepreneurs to rapidly develop defense drone technology in response to Russian aggression. ATP Gov is working to develop joint partnerships and licensing agreements with Ukrainian OEMs to import their IP and scale drone manufacturing in the US, where public policy favors purchasing from domestic vendors.

“Our customers have asked us to take that incredible Ukrainian drone technology and bring it to the US, please, so that we can build it here under our own constraints and take it out to the government,” Snider said, during his pitch. 

Bandelier Technologies, Inc.

Santa Fe, NM-based Bandelier Technologies is developing passive drone detection and tracking technology.

Co-founder and head of growth Joshua Heebner and senior scientist Moises Silva debuted MANTIS (Multi-Aperture Neuromorphic Tracking Intelligence System), a counter UAS edge platform used in the company’s backpack-sized drone defense devices. Designed with sensor technology developed by the Los Alamos National Laboratory, it was the first time it had been demonstrated in public.

MANTIS was inspired by Heebner’s combat experience as a former Green Beret in the United States Army Special Forces. However, he stressed it has applications beyond defense.

“This is truly dual-use,” Heebner said, from the conference stage. “Defense obviously has an immediate use case for it. But what does that do for homeland security that unlocks commercial users here? Whether it be critical infrastructure, let’s think power plants, let’s think data centers, let’s think about the national labs. The things that we rely on every day.”

Zing Drone Solutions 

Pendleton, OR-based remote detection and drone identification technology Zing Drone Solutions presented their Z-Scan full-scale counter-drone technology. Zing Drone Solutions is currently raising a $1.5 million seed round led by Intrepid Oregon Fund; they have raised $1.27 million to date.

The company has a proven track record, having won the People’s Choice Awards during the demo day at the Pendleton Investor Round-up in 2024. They were also the $100,000 grand prize winner out of 30 competitors at the Proven in Pendleton Counter-UAS Challenge in 2025.

Founder and CEO Ian Annase started the company after a drone he sold on Facebook Marketplace crashed while carrying contraband into a prison, leading to an unexpected phone call.

“The Air Force had one question for me,” said Annase. “They said, ‘Were you flying it?’ Because it was still registered to me in the FAA database.”

Vigilant Aerospace Systems

Oklahoma City-based Vigilant Aerospace Systems is developing a detect-and-avoid system that enables commercial and defense drones to operate safely in mixed and shared airspace.

According to Kraettli Epperson, CEO, there are few competitors in the space addressing this issue, which he explained is often solved through experimental and DIY solutions. The technology has been developed with two NASA patents licensed from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center.

“This is a critical technology to the growth of the industry, it’s a critical technology to the future of the ability to use these systems,” Epperson said from the conference stage. “We’re very fortunate we have the right product at the right time.”

Other sights around the conference

Here’s a look at some of the other sights and notable moments from the summit’s second day.