Helsing, the German protection tech startup backed by Spotify’s Daniel Ek and others, is producing 6,000 HX-2 strike drones along with the 4,000 HF-1 strike drones financed by Germany which can be at the moment being delivered to Ukraine.
“We’re scaling up manufacturing of HX-2 in response to further orders from Ukraine,” Helsing co-founder Gundbert Scherf stated in an announcement.
The announcement comes shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to start negotiations to finish the struggle in Ukraine, elevating questions on how for much longer the battle might final.
Strike drones, as their title suggests, are weaponized drones utilized in army operations, an area Helsing pivoted into in 2024. The corporate began out as an AI software play, however now claims its spot as “one of many largest strike drone producers globally,” in response to its newest announcement.
Drones, significantly first-person-view (FPV) kamikaze drones operated by human pilots, have performed a important function in serving to Ukraine offset its numerical and gear disadvantages towards Russia.
Even low-cost FPV drones are capable of precision strikes, and lots of are made in Ukraine by state-run, commercial and grass-roots manufacturers, however Helsing’s fashions add the flexibility to assemble into swarms.
Nonetheless, Helsing isn’t turning into a full-on {hardware} firm both. As a substitute, its guess is on a mixture of {hardware} and software program, together with its Altra platform connecting drones. “We resolve the exhausting issues within the software program layer, not the electronics,” stated one other of Helsing’s co-founders,” Niklas Köhler. “HX-2 is simply the primary of a complete vary of merchandise based mostly on this premise.”
Unveiled in late 2024, the HX-2 kamikaze drone model integrates AI, however has additionally been designed to be manufacturable at scale.
In relation to autonomous drones, AI is greater than a gimmick; it helps the machines discover their targets even when communications are jammed and information sign is misplaced. However prices additionally matter, particularly for kamikaze units. That’s why Helsing additionally needed manufacturing to be scalable.
The corporate hasn’t disclosed pricing, however claims its strategy results in decrease unit prices and extra scalable manufacturing than competing choices such because the AeroVironment Switchblade and its superior sensors.
Resilience factories
Not like the HF-1 drones, that are made in partnership with Ukrainian trade, these newer units are supposed to be manufactured in manufacturing amenities that Helsing names “Resilience Factories” and plans to construct throughout Europe.
Constructing a number of amenities as a substitute of centralizing manufacturing has the benefit of with the ability to supply from native provide chains and workforces, which is commonly a requirement from nationwide protection procurement departments for sovereignty causes.
In response to the corporate, its first Resilience Manufacturing facility in Southern Germany is now operational, with an preliminary month-to-month manufacturing capability of greater than 1,000 HX-2. Like different related amenities, it may possibly additionally “scale manufacturing charges to tens of hundreds of items in case of a battle.”
Helsing’s announcement was made on the eve of the Munich Security Conference, confirming Southern Germany as a protection hub. A report launched this week by Dealroom and the NATO Innovation Fund revealed that the nation secured Europe’s top spot in Defence, Resilience, and Security funding in 2024, with Munich as its principal cluster.
Helsing itself performed a giant function on this funding surge with an $487 million Series C it raised from Common Catalyst and others final 12 months. The startup, which has pulled in some €761.5 million thus far (or roughly $791 million), unveiled a strategic partnership with French AI champion Mistral this week through the Paris AI Action Summit. “Europe wants to say its power as a geopolitical actor, and AI management is the important thing to that power and Europe’s future safety and prosperity,” Scherf said.
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