XTEND lands $8.8M Pentagon contract for advanced AI-powered drones
XTEND lands $8.8M Pentagon contract for advanced AI-powered drones
The Israeli company’s precision strike drones enhance tactical operations in urban and open-field environments.
The U.S. Department of Defense’s Irregular Warfare Technical Support Directorate (IWTSD) has awarded a $8.8 million contract to XTEND, an Israeli company specializing in AI-powered autonomous systems and tactical drones. The contract will fund the production and deployment of XTEND's Precision Strike Indoor & Outdoor (PSIO) small Unmanned Aerial Systems (sUAS).
The PSIO sUAS is the first system of its kind to receive approval from the U.S. Department of Defense for both indoor and outdoor operations as a flying loitering munition platform. Designed for rapid deployment across urban and open-field environments, the system incorporates artificial intelligence to enable real-time, high-precision strikes with minimal human input. According to XTEND, which raised $40 million in Series B funding earlier this year, the drones aim to reduce operational risks while enhancing mission success rates.
The award follows extensive live-fire testing and safety evaluations of the system, which complies with the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Production is set to take place domestically in the United States, with initial deliveries planned for the first quarter of 2025.
“We are honored to strengthen our partnership with IWTSD,” said Aviv Shapira, XTEND’s founder and CEO. “The live-fire tests demonstrated the precision, reliability, and operational superiority of our Scorpio PSIO sUAS solution. This contract validates our technology's ability to address the complex challenges faced by modern defense forces.”
The PSIO sUAS has already been operationally tested in global conflict zones, including by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), and is described as one of the most effective loitering munition systems currently in use. Its AI-driven capabilities allow military units to perform complex missions in challenging environments, bolstering both situational awareness and tactical precision.
