Global Drone Production Surges Amid Ukraine Conflict and Advances in AI
Kseniia Kalmus, a floral artist from Kyiv, shifted her focus after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine to manufacturing FPV drones for the Ukrainian military, now producing hundreds monthly.
The war in Ukraine has driven a global surge in drone production, scaling Ukraine's capabilities from just a handful of producers to hundreds. Kyiv reports that drones are responsible for about three-quarters of Russian battlefield losses, highlighting their significance over traditional weapons.
Drones have emerged as a global class of weapon, deployed across regions including the Middle East, Myanmar, and Sudan, utilizing a variety of drone technologies.
In Europe, companies like Tekever, valued at over $1 billion, and Stark, expanding with a new factory in Swindon, illustrate the growing industry, alongside the UK's planned military drone spending of approximately £4.5 billion.
Major defence contractors such as Lockheed Martin and Boeing operate alongside smaller manufacturers like AeroVironment within the expanding drone sector.
Concurrent with drone proliferation, the counter-drone industry is also growing to safeguard critical infrastructure. For instance, Belgium has sought enhanced drone defences following disruptions at Brussels Airport on 7 November.
Industry experts such as DroneShield's Oleg Vornik note considerable growth in the counter-drone market, with startups like Munin Dynamics developing portable drone-defence systems.
Looking ahead, experts anticipate artificial intelligence will drive the sector's next advancement, enabling operators to control multiple drones simultaneously or deploy autonomous drone swarms.
