Israel’s military has fielded a “first-of-its-kind” turbo system on its Lavi Hummer tactical vehicle, using enhanced air intake to hold engine power at high altitudes.

The 810th Mountain Brigade already operates the upgraded vehicle in Syria and Lebanon, with added steering, cooling, braking, and LED lighting, along with the turbo.

Commanders report faster ascents in mountainous terrain like Mount Hermon, and the unit hopes to double its vehicle count within a year.

Ukraine’s government-backed Brave1 platform has begun developing airbikes and air-mobile buggies as optionally unmanned systems for frontline troop insertions.

The vehicles are envisioned to autonomously return after dropping personnel, reducing soldiers’ exposure during movement to forward positions.

Existing platforms like Poland’s Volonaut jet-bike and Sweden’s Jetson ONE eVTOL demonstrate the conceptis viability, potentially making Ukraine an early military adopter.

The Pentagon’s GenAI.mil marketplace reached 1.7 million users and over 100,000 custom agents, chief digital and AI officer Cameron Stanley said at the AWS Summit.

The platform hosts models from OpenAI, Google, NVIDIA, Microsoft, Oracle, SpaceX, and AWS at Impact Levels 6 and 7, with ChatGPT eligible this month.

Stanley plans to add more models and push GenAI.mil to higher classification levels, framing AI as essential for faster battlefield decisions.

Teledyne FLIR Defense and STORM Vanguard integrated the Black Recon drone into RADS, a modular docking station letting it launch from nearly any vehicle without custom work.

RADS mounts on pickups, snowmobiles, boats, ATVs, and uncrewed ground vehicles, and detaches as a portable launcher a single operator can deploy in minutes.

Announced at Eurosatory 2026, the system frees Black Recon’s thermal-imaging drones from a dedicated platform, which the company calls a foundation for its wider portfolio.

Echodyne CEO Eben Frankenberg says demand for affordable short-range radars could grow tenfold by 2030 as the counter-drone market runs “red hot.”

The firm is investing $40 million in a new factory to lift capacity to 30,000 radar panels a year, with book-sized radars costing around $40,000 each.

Defense now drives 65% of sales, and Echodyne radars appear in counter-drone systems from Epirus, AeroVironment, Kongsberg, and Rheinmetall.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth created the Direct Reporting Portfolio Manager for Unmanned Systems (DRPM-UxS) to oversee nearly all Pentagon drone and counter-drone efforts.

The office absorbs JIATF-401 and the Defense Autonomous Warfare Group, uses the Defense Innovation Unit as its sole commercial liaison, and reports to the deputy defense secretary.

New drone marketplaces now require DRPM-UxS approval, mirroring the Air Force’s 2025 consolidation and aiming to speed how the military buys and fields autonomy.

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