Drone Dominance Program Orders Top $203 Million as XTEND, Neros and Orqa Win Pentagon Deals

Featured image: A first-person-view (FPV) drone at a U.S. Army and Marine Corps training event, shown for illustration. Photo: U.S. Army / Sgt. Tyler Wassmer via Wikimedia Commons (public domain).

The Pentagon’s Drone Dominance Program has begun turning its second test round into orders, with at least $203.5 million in disclosed awards to four small-drone makers and about 60,000 drones planned in total from the top finishers. XTEND said on Oct. 20, 2026, that its order covers 6,000 STRIKER combat drones valued at more than $40.5 million, the latest company to put a number on its share.

The disclosed awards so far are Neros at more than $100 million, XTEND at $40.5 million, Orqa US at $38 million and Swarm Defense Technologies at a minimum of $25 million, according to figures compiled by GovConFeed from Defense Daily reporting and company statements. GovConFeed said it did not find a Defense Department contract announcement listing the awards, and delivery schedules have not been published.

The Gauntlet II drone orders by company

• Neros Technologies (Torrance, Calif.): 14,000 drones and explosive payloads, valued by the company at more than $100 million, after placing first in close quarters battle and third in deep strike, DroneXL reported. The order covers the 10-inch Archer AI and a 5-inch Archer built for urban and indoor fighting.
• Orqa US, the American arm of Croatia’s Orqa FPV: 7,000 drones for $38 million after a second-place close quarters finish.
• XTEND: 6,000 STRIKER drones for more than $40.5 million after a third-place close quarters finish.
• Swarm Defense Technologies (Michigan): 4,000 Kiwi one-way attack drones worth at least $25 million, including munitions, after placing fifth in deep strike.
• Undisclosed values: Perennial Autonomy (8,000 drones), Hyperscale (7,000), Skycutter (5,000), Vector (5,000) and ModalAI (4,000), according to Tectonic.

How the Drone Dominance competition works

The Defense Innovation Unit runs the program, which tests vendors in head-to-head “Gauntlet” events with military operators and then buys from the top performers. Gauntlet II took place at Fort Carson, Colorado, and had two mission areas: deep strike and close quarters battle, DefenseScoop reported.

Officials said operators flew 1,858 sorties across 23 platforms from 19 companies. All 11 platforms evaluated at long distance reached 15 kilometers, compared with 24% of drones reaching 10 kilometers in the first Gauntlet. The department said this round’s drones are “cheaper, more capable, and sourced from a supply chain more closely tied to the American industrial base.”

Perennial Autonomy won deep strike, followed by Hyperscale, Neros, Skycutter and Swarm. Neros led close quarters battle, followed by Orqa US, XTEND, Vector and ModalAI.

Unit prices and what comes next

The awards imply prices of roughly $6,100 to $6,750 per drone, according to Defense Daily figures cited by GovConFeed. XTEND’s $40.5 million for 6,000 drones works out to $6,750 each. GovConFeed noted that Orqa’s reported figures do not reconcile: $38 million across 7,000 drones is about $5,429, not the $6,100 reported. Tectonic reported that the program’s target unit price is set to fall to $2,300 by the end of the competition.

Orders are not guaranteed to continue. XTEND must deliver 400 STRIKER drones under its current order before taking part in Gauntlet III, which formally began on Sept. 28, Dronefront reported, and the Pentagon has said participation does not guarantee further contracts. Tectonic reported that the program plans orders for 150,000 small drones from the top five companies at the end of its four stages, for a total of 340,000 drones procured and sent to combat units.

For background on how these aircraft are used and countered, see our drone warfare guide. Army leaders discussed related priorities at AUSA 2026 in Washington.

Additional details

• XTEND software: XTEND’s drones run its XOS software, which the company calls a “human-guided autonomous operating system,” designed for missions where satellite navigation is unavailable or jammed.
• Neros bonus order: DroneXL said Neros also received 800 additional drones from Gauntlet I, an order taken from competitors that missed their production deadline. At program unit prices of $3,500 and $4,500, DroneXL calculated that 14,000 drones would cost $49 million to $63 million, below the company’s $100 million-plus valuation of its award, which includes payloads.
• Gauntlet I: The first round, held earlier this year at Fort Benning, Georgia, led to orders for about 30,000 drones, according to DefenseScoop.
• Naming: Outlets use different company names in places; DefenseScoop lists “ORQA US” and “XTEND Reality,” while Defense Daily uses “Orqa US” and “XTEND AI Robotics.”
• Other military drone awards: Separately, Redwire said it will deliver Stalker drones to the National Guard Bureau under purchase orders worth about $13.8 million, SatNow reported.

Sources

• DefenseScoop: Pentagon unveils top performers in latest Gauntlet
• GovConFeed: $203.5M+ in Drone Dominance Gauntlet II orders
• Tectonic: Orqa US and XTEND land Drone Dominance Program orders
• Tectonic: Gauntlet 2 winners secure big orders
• DroneXL: Neros wins $100M Pentagon order
• Dronefront: XTend lands US order for 6,000 combat drones
• SatNow: Redwire secures $13.8 million National Guard contract