Public safety technology company Axon will invest $1.2 billion in drone maker Skydio, a deal that values Skydio at $5.2 billion before the investment, Resilience Media reported on Nov. 6. Skydio will stay independent, and Axon will take a minority, non-voting stake.
Related: Shield AI to Buy Counter-Drone Radar Maker Echodyne for $5.3 Billion.
Deal terms
The deal will raise Axon’s fully diluted ownership of Skydio by about 20%, according to Resilience Media. It mixes cash and Axon shares, including new capital for Skydio and purchases of existing shares. It is expected to close in stages in the fourth quarter of 2026 and the first quarter of 2027, the outlet reported.
Axon will become Skydio’s exclusive distributor for public safety customers in the United States and Canada, and Skydio will be Axon’s exclusive drone supplier in those markets, Resilience Media reported.
Why not a merger
Skydio co-founder and CEO Adam Bry wrote on LinkedIn that both companies “seriously considered” an acquisition but decided they could be more useful as independent companies, according to Resilience Media. Bry said Skydio did not need new capital and that most of the money gives liquidity to existing shareholders and employees.
The military side
The exclusivity covers public safety only, so Skydio can keep growing its military and industrial business, Resilience Media reported. The California company supplies every branch of the U.S. military and the armed forces of 32 allied nations, the outlet said. Skydio expects about $1 billion in total bookings this financial year.
The market
More than 28 million Americans live within two miles of a Skydio “drone as first responder” dock, and Axon puts the U.S. and Canadian market for the technology at about $13 billion, according to Resilience Media. More coverage is in Technology and Military.
Sources
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