The verified answer
As of Oct 2026, DEPLOY verifies AeroVironment: 3 models, 3 deployments across 2 regions, 1 active incident. 17 sources back the record.
CategoryDrones
Appears inMilitary & defense drones
Overview
American defense-technology and unmanned-systems company (NASDAQ: AVAV), founded 1971 by Paul MacCready. Best known for small unmanned aircraft (Puma) and Switchblade loitering munitions, plus the newer P550 and the JUMP 20 VTOL. Reported about $820.6M revenue in FY2025 (ended Apr 30, 2025) and closed the ~$4.1B all-stock acquisition of Bluehalo in May 2025. Its AVACORE open autonomy software architecture spans platforms.
Verified record
- Verified deployments
- 3 deployments on file
- Active incidents
- 1 incident on file
Key facts
Public
Revenue
Acquisition
Founded
Software
Data & sources
Company filings
3
Press releases
5
Patent documents
5
Web sources
4
17 sources backing this record.View all →
Models (3)
View all models →Current platform
AeroVironment Puma
Hand-launched small unmanned aircraft system (Puma AE / Puma 3 AE / Puma LE) for ISR, long-fielded with the US military and allies. A named retrofit target for the AVACORE autonomy architecture and ARK edge-compute kit.
Current platform
AeroVironment P550
Group 2 eVTOL unmanned aircraft system with about five hours endurance, delivered to the US Army under the Long Range Reconnaissance (LRR) program; a $117M Army production deal followed in 2026.
Current platform
AeroVironment Switchblade (300/600)
Tube-launched loitering munitions: the Switchblade 300 (anti-personnel) and Switchblade 600 (anti-armor). Mass-produced and supplied to the US Army under a nearly $1B IDIQ and sent to Ukraine. The US Army program of record is LMAMS (Lethal Miniature Aerial Missile System).
Partnerships
Every company AeroVironment has built with, alongside the ones only announced in a press release.
Most-frequent partners
- 1US Army2× joint
- 2Pentagon1× joint
- 3U.S. Army1× joint
Most recent
- with Pentagonoperating
- with U.S. Armyoperating
- with US Armyoperating
- AeroVironment x US Army P5502026-06-03with US Armyoperating
AeroVironment on the deployment map
View the global map3 verified deployments across 2 regions, newest verified Jun 2024. Explore where AeroVironment's robots are operating, by place and type.
View the full AeroVironment deployment record →
Relationships
Claims ledger
Public, dated claims by AeroVironment, each tracked against the evidence. Status is a DEPLOY assessment from primary sources: verified means an independent source confirms it; contradicted means one refutes it; open means the outcome is not yet determinable. Every entry keeps its verbatim quote and source so you can check the call yourself.
- VerifiedCustomer · claimed 2026-07-02
“AeroVironment Secures $500 Million U.S. Defense Contract for Counter-Drone Systems”
Correction: this verdict was recorded with the claim date as its effective date. DEPLOY recorded it on 2026-07-09, which is its effective date.
- VerifiedCapacity · claimed 2026-01-01
“AeroVironment to produce deadly drones at scale”
Correction: this verdict was recorded with the claim date as its effective date. DEPLOY recorded it on 2026-07-09, which is its effective date.
- RetractedCapacity · claimed 2025-01-01 · deadline 2025-12-31
“Nearly three million drones ready by end of 2025”
CORRECTION: The '3 million drones' figure originated from a Forbes social post about Ukraine's total FPV drone supply chain, not an AeroVironment exec statement. The claim appears mis-attributed — AeroVironment's actual scale is thousands of systems via $874M IDIQ contract. Marking as retracted (claim appears mis-recorded). Flag to CoS: the Claim text itself may need correction — the source URL is a Forbes Facebook post, not a primary AeroVironment statement.
Disagree with a status? AeroVironment can submit a correction with evidence and we log the response on the record. Methodology and the full industry ledger live at /stats/claim-integrity.
Current leadership (7)
- Wahid Nawabi Chairman, President & CEOIR-verified
- Sean Woodward EVP & CFOIR-verified
- Rob Smith EVP & COOIR-verified
- Trace Stevenson President, Autonomous SystemsIR-verified
- Mary Clum President, Space, Cyber & Directed EnergyIR-verified
- Scott Bowman CTO & SVP Global EngineeringIR-verified
- Paul B. MacCready Jr. Foundersecondary-verified
Founders (1)
- Paul B. MacCready Jr.no longer at company
Board (10)
- Wahid Nawabi chair
- Edward Muller director
- Charles Burbage director
- David Wodlinger director
- Henry Albers director
- Stephen Page director
- Cindy Lewis director
- Philip Davidson director
- Mary Beth Long director
- Joseph Votel director
Safety record
Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.
Full safety record: incidents, sourcing, and exposure data →
Incidents affecting AeroVironment (1)
- Pentagon awards AeroVironment 00M contract for counter-drone technology2026-07-02 · Regulatory action
Includes incidents linked directly to this company, to its models, or to deployments of its models or under its operation. Retracted incidents are excluded from this view but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.
Operator customers (1)
- AeroVironment3 deployments
Brains developed (1)
- AeroVironment AVACOREframework · production
Recent coverage
AeroVironment in third-party press
Peers
98 peers across 1 segment. Every AeroVironment competitor derived from shared form-factor and application-domain edges.
drone(98)
57 companies in this segment · moderately_concentrated (HHI 1809.2177305910177) · leader Anduril Industries at 3057%
- AEVEX Aerospacedirect competitor(inferred)moderate
- ATL Global Holding AGdirect competitor(inferred)moderate
- Aereodirect competitor(inferred)moderate
- AgXeeddirect competitor(inferred)moderate
- AirForestrydirect competitor(inferred)moderate
- Alta Aresdirect competitor(inferred)moderate
Mentioned on (24)
Registry pages whose text names AeroVironment.
Companies (2)
Robots and products (2)
People (19)
Paul B. MacCready Jr., Trace Stevenson, Sean Woodward, Scott Bowman, Rob Smith, Mary Clum, Tad McGeer, Jonathan Moneymaker, D'Milo Hallerberg, Joseph Votel, Mary Beth Long, Philip Davidson, Cindy Lewis, Stephen Page, Henry Albers, David Wodlinger, Charles Burbage, Edward Muller, Wahid Nawabi
Supplied by (1)
Batteries
- Amprius Technologies, Inc.company-levelSiCore 100% silicon-anode lithium-ion cells (selected for UAS platforms)supplies
Inbound supply edges feeding this company directly or via the models it owns. Same source bar as the outbound view (verified against at least two strong sources).
Financial state
- Reporting basis
- sec_10k
- Revenue disclosed
- $820600000 (sec_10k)
- Lifecycle stage
- growth
- Counterparty risk class
- low
Each numeric field carries its own basis marker. Aggregators report a number; this surface preserves the source class so verification depth travels with the value.
Partnerships
4 total · 4 operating · 1 ended
Every company AeroVironment has built with, alongside the ones only announced in a press release.
Most recent
- with Pentagonoperating
- with U.S. Armyoperating
- with US Armyoperating
- AeroVironment x US Army P5502026-06-03with US Armyoperating
Most-frequent partners
- 1US Army2× joint
- 2Pentagon1× joint
- 3U.S. Army1× joint
All 4 partnerships
open in the atlas →- deployment2026-07-02operating
- AeroVironment x US Army 500M Counter-DronewithU.S. Armydeployment2026-07-02operating
- AeroVironment x US Army P550withUS Armydeployment2026-06-03operating
- deployment2026-07-02supersededoperating
Funding rounds (1)
- IPO2007-01-22
Investors: Public Market (lead)
Acquisitions (4)
- acquired BlueHalofull acquisition2025-01-01
- acquired Tomahawk Roboticsfull acquisition2023-08-23
- acquired Arcturus UAVfull acquisition2022-01-01
- acquired Arcturus UAVfull acquisition2021-02-01
Patent estate (5)
- US9187184B2usptograntedgranted 2015-11-17assignee
- US20220223056A1usptopendingassignee
- US9715009B1usptograntedgranted 2017-07-25assignee
- US9567081B1usptograntedgranted 2017-02-07assignee
- USD461159S1usptograntedgranted 2008-01-15assignee
Timeline
Every recorded move in AeroVironment’s history, most recent first: funding rounds, partnerships, acquisitions, supply-chain starts, key hires, and press.
PartnershipAeroVironment x Pentagon 00M Counter-Drone Contract
2026-07-02Pentagon awarded AeroVironment 00M contract for counter-drone technology. Major counter-UAS investment.
PartnershipAeroVironment x US Army 500M Counter-Drone
2026-07-02The U.S. Army awarded AeroVironment a 500M contract for commercial counter-drone and counter-small unmanned aerial systems capabilities, the largest counter-drone contract in recent Army procurement.
PartnershipUS Army x AeroVironment 500M counter-drone contract
2026-07-02The Pentagon awarded AeroVironment a 500M contract for counter-drone technology on July 2 2026. The US Army contract supports counter-UAS systems as the military rapidly adapts to new realities of drone warfare.
New supplierNew supplier: Amprius Technologies, Inc.
2026-06-26Supply: SiCore 100% silicon-anode lithium-ion cells (selected for UAS platforms) from Amprius Technologies, Inc.
PartnershipAeroVironment x US Army P550
2026-06-03US Army awarded AeroVironment 17.3M contract for 82 P550 long-range reconnaissance drones. Delivery by late July 2026.
AcquisitionAcquired BlueHalo
2025-01-01Acquired BlueHalo (full_acquisition)
AcquisitionAcquired Tomahawk Robotics
2023-08-23Acquired Tomahawk Robotics (full_acquisition)
AcquisitionAcquired Arcturus UAV
2022-01-01Acquired Arcturus UAV (full_acquisition)
Recent activity
Every change to this record is dated, sourced, and independently verified where marked.
- Incident recordedJul 2, 2026
Pentagon awards AeroVironment 00M contract for counter-drone technology
- Verified media addedVerifiedJun 11, 2026
AeroVironment | Who We Are
- Verified media addedVerifiedJun 5, 2026
AeroVironment Puma LE ISR UAS
- Verified media addedVerifiedJun 5, 2026
AeroVironment P550 Group 2 eVTOL UAS
- Verified media addedVerifiedJun 5, 2026
AeroVironment Switchblade 600 loitering munition
Sources (12)
- https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001368622/000155837025008838/avav-20250430x10k.htm
- https://investor.avinc.com/node/19576/pdf
- https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/aerovironment-revenue-jumps-14-fiscal-2025
- https://investor.avinc.com/news-releases/news-release-details/aerovironment-acquire-bluehalo-establishing-next-generation
- https://spacenews.com/aerovironment-to-acquire-bluehalo-in-4-1-billion-deal/
- https://www.avinc.com/resources/press-releases/view/aerovironment-and-bluehalo-complete-transaction-creating-a-global-defense-technology
- https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1368622/000110465925043118/tm2513632d1_ex99-1.htm
- https://www.army-technology.com/news/av-bluehalo-acquisition-us/
- https://investor.avinc.com/board-directors/wahid-nawabi
- https://www.avinc.com/resources/press-releases/view/dr._paul_maccready_founder_and_former_chairman_of_aerovironment_dies
- https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1368622/000155837025011973/avav-20250802x10q.htm
- https://www.defensenews.com/land/2024/08/28/aerovironment-wins-nearly-1b-to-supply-switchblade-munitions-to-army/
Common questions
What is AeroVironment?
What does AeroVironment make?
Is AeroVironment publicly traded?
Who competes with AeroVironment?
Who is the CEO of AeroVironment?
How can I invest in AeroVironment?
Where is AeroVironment headquartered?
Who owns AeroVironment?
Where does AeroVironment operate robots?
How many robots has AeroVironment deployed?
Is AeroVironment a top robotics company?
When was AeroVironment founded?
Are there any incidents involving AeroVironment?
Is AeroVironment safe?
Methodology: Verified · 12 sources (8 primary) · last reviewed 2026-10-12
Verification posture
Verified
High confidence
Review state
Stable
Last reviewed 2026-10-12
Sources by quality tier
- 5
- primary-company-ir
- Company IR disclosure
- 4
- unclassified
- Unclassified source
- 3
- primary-sec-filing
- SEC filing
The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.
Methodology surface for AeroVironment.Peer companies
- Amazon25 models
- DJI9 models
- Anduril Industries7 models
- Skydio6 models
- Autel Robotics4 models
- Baykar4 models
In the press
Recent coverage mentioning AeroVironment from third-party publications. Automatically surfaced; not part of the verified registry record.
Uncrewed truck with anti-drone laser shown at AUSA
An uncrewed hybrid truck built by California’s Harbinger is powering a 30-kilowatt AeroVironment counter-drone laser at the Association of the U.S. Army’s annual meeting in…
The OODA Loop for the Autonomous Age: From the F-16 to the Autonomous Fight
By Mary Clum, President of Space, Cyber and Directed Energy, AV My grandfather helped change the way we think about air combat. Harry J. Hillaker, the “Father of the F-16,” was…
AV’s VideoRay Selected as Subcontractor for Navy Mine Countermeasure Prototype Effort
Integrated solution demonstrated autonomous, over-the-horizon mine countermeasure operations during competitive Navy trials ARLINGTON, Va., OCTOBER 08, 2026 — AeroVironment, Inc.…
NIOA, AeroVironment team to offer and support loitering munitions Down Under
The partnership will target introduction and support of loitering munitions in Australia and New Zealand
AeroVironment delivers first batch of Switchblade 600 loitering munitions to Lithuania
Lithuania’s military has received its first batch of Switchblade 600 loitering munitions from U.S. manufacturer AeroVironment, the Ministry of National Defense said.
Pentagon picks 4 vendors for counter-drone directed energy pilot program
AeroVironment, Epirus, Kord and Boeing were selected for JIATF-401’s pilot program.
U.S. Army laser weapon shown defeating drones at border
The U.S. Department of War has released new footage showing an Army Multi-Purpose High Energy Laser, built with directed-energy technology from AeroVironment (AV), defeating…
Red Cat Sinks 6% as Speculative Drone Names Extend Month-Long Slide; Unusual Machines Drops 4%, AeroVironment Barely Budges
3 Defense Stocks Riding the High-Energy Laser Boom
AeroVironment won a $465 million Army laser weapon contract and posted record revenue, while Kratos and Red Cat Holdings also stand to benefit from growing military demand for…
Boeing Wins $13.4 Billion KC-46 Air Force Contract Amid Defense Awards
Air Force boosts Boeing's KC-46 contract by $13.4 billion. AeroVironment subsidiary BlueHalo, Northrop Grumman awarded defense deals. The post Boeing Wins $13.4 Billion KC-46 Air…
AeroVironment bags first international order for LOCUST laser system
AeroVironment has received the first international purchase order for its LOCUST laser weapon system, designed to counter smaller drones.
Drone Maker AeroVironment Soars With Analyst Targets After Earnings Beat
AeroVironment posts record Q1 revenue, backlog as demand for drones and counter-drone systems soar. AVAV stock jumps, analysts lift targets. The post Drone Maker AeroVironment…
Machine-readable surfaces
- Markdown mirror: /companies/aerovironment.md
- RSS feed: /companies/aerovironment/feed.xml
- JSON-LD: embedded in this page’s head
- REST API: /v1/companies/a1306b4f-26b1-459a-84ec-d1ba6ee8f822
- Revision history: /companies/aerovironment/history
- Data documentation: /data
- Query this programmatically: Deploy MCP
Peer companies
- Amazon25 models
- DJI9 models
- Anduril Industries7 models
- Skydio6 models
- Autel Robotics4 models
- Baykar4 models
Video
Since the start of the Ukrainian counter-offensive, there has been a notable rise in the use of Lancet drones by the Russian military. More specifically, they h
The United States sends switchblade drones to Ukraine as part of the Biden administration's new 800 million dollar weapons package. The package will include 10
Why Choose AeroVironment ? At AeroVironment, we are working together, and have been for decades, on transformative innovations to protect, sustain and connect
At AV, we build shoulder-to-shoulder with our customers, delivering systems shaped by real-world missions, not theoretical requirements. Now stronger than ever,
In our "Weapon of the Week," we feature AeroVironment's P-550 drone. With advanced reconnaissance capabilities and high-tech sensors for real-time intelligence,
A video compilation of how American suicide drones Switchblade 300 are helping Ukrainian army to fight with Russian occupiers. Source: 1) https://inforesist.or
AeroVironment has received a contract modification, raising the value of its contract with the US Army to sell Puma 3 AE RQ-20B drones by $11.24 million. While
Heat Index
Serious58/100
A composite of competitive footprint, funding, press velocity, active partnerships, and supply-chain edges. Different from the Intelligence score below (which is per-form-factor productization). Non-robotics companies cap at 25.
Reality vs attention
AeroVironment draws attention at the 96th percentile but verifies reality at the 81st percentile among aerial robots. Hype Gap +15.3, 37th widest among aerial robots.
6-month trend
Analysis
Safety profile within acceptable range for category. Broad public reach with 1.8M video views. Funding runway warrants monitoring: last known round 240 months ago.
Signal flags
Dimension breakdown
Verified signal
Attention (reach, not merit)
DEPLOY Intelligence scores are computed from verified registry data: confirmed deployments, disclosed funding rounds, regulatory filings, active job listings, video viewership, and press coverage. Confidence ratings reflect data availability. Scores update nightly.
DEPLOY Indices — verified vs claimed
Last computed: Oct 13, 2026