Distributed on behalf of ZenaTech
The drone industry is just starting to take off, creating a unique opportunity for ZenaTech (NASDAQ: ZENA), AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV), Leonardo DRS (NASDAQ: DRS), L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) and Red Cat Holdings (NASDAQ: RCAT).
That’s because drones are quickly becoming an essential tool for the U.S. government, thanks in large part to President Trump and U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, who are demanding U.S. drone dominance.
Remember, President Trump recently unveiled the “One Big Beautiful Bill”, which unlocks federal funding for domestic drone production.
That’s in addition to the white House’s AI Action Plan and the three Executive Orders issued in July 2025, which prioritize domestic AI innovation, infrastructure development, and deployment of ideologically neutral AI technologies.
And, we can’t forget Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s policy directive, Unleashing U.S. Military Drone Dominance, which made it easier for American drone companies—especially those building Group 1 and 2 affordable drone systems—to sell directly to the military, scale production, and innovate without delays from traditional defense procurement bottlenecks including Blue UAS certification timelines.
One of the beneficiaries is ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ: ZENA).
ZenaTech just provided an an update on its ZenaDrone drone solutions subsidiary, reflecting accelerating efforts and growing engagement with US defense government stakeholders. The company also reported progress towards providing field demonstrations leading to planned pilot agreements in 2026.
As noted by Shaun Passley, Ph.D., ZenaTech CEO:
“Our active discussions with US defense agency program managers are on track to deliver opportunities for technical field demonstrations and planned pilot programs in 2026. We anticipate making announcements regarding ZenaDrone’s success in the first quarter of the coming year. This accelerated engagement, combined with strategic investments across US manufacturing, AI innovation, and our drone platforms, reflects a deliberate and disciplined execution plan. Through ZenaDrone we are dedicated to supporting evolving mission needs with scalable, AI‑powered drone solutions to address national security priorities.”
ZenaTech’s multi-pronged approach to winning US defense and federal agency contracts is designed to meet growing demand for domestically produced, secure, and technologically advanced unmanned aerial systems that support critical military mission requirements. These range from inspection, surveillance, and reconnaissance to cargo logistics, inventory 8management, and emergency response. In addition, ZenaTech expanded and strengthened its US operations to support deeper government engagement, domestic manufacturing, and engineering collaboration for rapid deployment of drone services tailored to federal requirements.
The opening of its new Washington, D.C.-area office places ZenaDrone at the epicenter of the federal government and defense community, meant to enable close coordination with military stakeholders, procurement officials, and congressional leaders. This strategic location supports early alignment on defense priorities and accelerates the pursuit of contract opportunities. The office is currently being staffed to lead ZenaDrone’s business development, capture, and program management activities—functions that are essential to driving the company’s defense revenue growth.
Simultaneously, the company is commissioning a significantly expanded Arizona footprint in the city of Mesa for US-based drone assembly, production, and testing expected to be operational in Q1 2026. This expansion ensures that ZenaDrone’s flagship drone platforms are manufactured to meet stringent US and NATO standards, reinforcing the Company’s commitment to American-made, NDAA-compliant defense technologies.
Further, in line with the White House’s AI Action Plan and accompanying Executive Orders, ZenaTech recently established Zena AI, Inc., a specialized AI division based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana for AI and autonomy development. This R&D center will drive the development of next-generation AI-driven solutions tailored for defense and homeland security missions, including autonomous navigation, multi-drone coordination, and real-time decision-making analytics.
ZenaDrone’s flagship advanced multi‑mission drone systems for government and defense currently at various testing and cybersecurity certification readiness stages include:
· The ZenaDrone 1000, a medium-sized VTOL (Vertical Takeoff and Landing) rugged construction drone capable of lifting ~40 kg, with AI-enabled autonomy, and secure communications via its proprietary Drone Net system. Designed for inspection, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) applications, critical cargo applications, and border patrol via a gas version currently under development, being designed for longer flights. It has undergone paid trials with both the US Air Force and Navy Reserve for applications, including critical cargo delivery such as temperature controlled medical supplies
· The IQ Nano, a compact indoor drone (starting size 20″×20″), built to operate in GPS-denied environments like warehouses or military infrastructures for inventory management via barcode scanning and security applications, it features obstacle avoidance and AI-driven drone swarms or fleets
· The IQ Square, a VTOL drone (starting size 40” X40”) engineered for line-of-sight land surveys, infrastructure inspections, road and bridge inspections, and defense reconnaissance tasks
The US military procurement cycle for drone solutions typically begins with early engagement and capability demonstrations, followed by requirement alignment and evaluation, progression into pilot or prototype programs, and ultimately acquisition processes that lead to contract awards and scaled deployment. Through accelerated engagement efforts, ZenaDrone is focused on being positioned as a trusted partner and supplier to US defense and homeland security agencies, fully aligned with evolving national security priorities and federal policy directives.
Other related developments from around the markets include:
AeroVironment reported financial results for the fiscal second quarter ended November 1, 2025. Second Quarter Highlights: Record second quarter revenue of $472.5 million up, 151% year-over-year; with BlueHalo contributing $245.1 million and legacy revenue of $227.4 million up 21% year-over year; Bookings of $1.4 billion; Book-to-bill ratio of 2.9. “AV is operating from a position of strength as evidenced by our record second quarter results, all-time high bookings and long-term contract wins,” said Wahid Nawabi, chairman, president and CEO. “We have built a portfolio of integrated capabilities and advanced technologies to meet the market’s accelerating demand and serve as a partner of choice in critical moments. While we are pleased with our results for the quarter, we are just getting started. We are confident that our unmatched innovation, strategic partnerships and agility to expand our manufacturing capacity enable us to address evolving defense needs and lead the generational shift in defense over the longer-term.”
Leonardo DRS signed a contract from Chaiseri Defense Systems to provide its advanced Battle Management System (BMS) and integration support services to modernize the Royal Thailand Army’s Stryker situational awareness capabilities. The agreement underscores the strong and growing partnership between the two companies and reinforces Leonardo DRS’s long-term commitment to supporting Thailand’s modernization priorities. Under the contract, Leonardo DRS will provide its combat-proven advanced BMS capability, critical project management, engineering, and support services. Chaiseri will deliver a range of local support services including system installation, commissioning, operator training, and through-life sustainment for the new BMS capability. The industry-leading BMS capability from Leonardo DRS will integrate advanced tactical computing solutions that include a next-generation software suite enabling real-time situational awareness at the vehicle, command post, and brigade levels.
L3Harris Technologies has been selected as a subcontractor to provide assured communications support for the U.S. Air Force’s E-4C fleet in support of the U.S. Survivable Airborne Operations Center (SAOC) program, primed by global aerospace and defense company, SNC. The engineering and manufacturing development contracted to L3Harris, awarded by SNC subcontractor Collins Aerospace, an RTX business, spans five years. As part of the SNC-led team, L3Harris will help guide communication-suite integration efforts, bringing the latest resilient communications technology to this specialized fleet and expanding its role with air, ground and space communications. The company will leverage its 15 years of experience supporting the E-4C’s predecessor, the E-4B, and continued wideband communications innovation to deliver new, resilient technology in support of the most critical command-and-control missions.
Red Cat Holdings reported its financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2025. “Our record-breaking third quarter revenue and the expansion of our contract with the U.S. Army clearly demonstrates the accelerating adoption of our specialized solutions within the defense and national security sectors,” said Jeff Thompson, CEO of Red Cat. “We are seeing significant returns on our focused strategy, with our products being validated by major government agencies and NATO allies and necessitating the recent 2x expansion of our drone manufacturing facilities. This expansion allows us to deliver speed and volume at scale to the Department of War and U.S. Allies through FMS (Foreign Military Sales). Also, the recent launch of our USV division, Blue Ops, and the lease of our 155,000 sq foot vessel building facility positions us to be the leader of delivering critical unmanned systems for use over land and sea.”
Legal Disclaimer / Except for the historical information presented herein, matters discussed in this article contains forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Winning Media is not registered with any financial or securities regulatory authority and does not provide nor claims to provide investment advice or recommendations to readers of this release. For making specific investment decisions, readers should seek their own advice. Winning Media is only compensated for its services in the form of cash-based compensation. Pursuant to an agreement Winning Media has been paid three thousand five hundred dollars for advertising and marketing services for ZenaTech by ZenaTech. We own ZERO shares of ZenaTech. Please click here for full disclaimer.
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