Atlanta-based defense startup building low-cost, hand-launched autonomous C-UAS interceptors designed to make hostile drone attacks economically unsustainable.
Askari Defense, Inc. is an Atlanta-based defense technology startup developing low-cost intelligent kinetic systems for counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS) missions. Its primary product is a hand-launched autonomous interceptor intended for operators at the forward edge of the fight, designed to engage hostile drones autonomously. The engineering thesis is economic as much as tactical: build interceptors cheaply enough that a successful defense does not cost more than the threat it defeats, making robotic attacks an uneconomic proposition for an adversary.
The company was founded by three engineers from Georgia Tech and raised $9 million in seed funding. Its team has been recruited from aerospace and defense organizations including Skydio, Hermeus, Near Earth Autonomy, Area-I/Anduril, Raytheon, Sandia National Laboratories, and GTRI. Askari works directly with end users to translate emerging battlefield requirements into hardware and software that is ruggedized, scalable, and fieldable. The company recently emerged from stealth mode.
The technical work spans autonomous systems, unmanned aerial systems, and kinetic interceptor design - the usual hard problems of a C-UAS engagement: detection and tracking of small, low-cost aerial targets, on-board guidance and terminal engagement under size, weight, and cost constraints, and autonomous operation when communications are contested. The name Askari means guard, soldier, and protector.
