What does one intercept actually cost?
A missile can cost a hundred times the drone it hits. How cheap interceptor drones turned the cost math around in Ukraine.
Full answer in the deck
LAST UPDATED: October 3, 2026
Get the latest reality check on counter-UAS
Counter-drone is an economics problem disguised as a technology one. An effector that costs more than the drone wins the engagement and loses the campaign, and jamming stopped working on fibre-controlled aircraft. Plenty of people have lost money reading it wrong. You don't have to. This deck has just been updated, and it will give you every answer you need.
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The 12 sections
In counter-drone, the winning system is rarely the most advanced one: it is the one that costs less than the threat and is legal to use where it is needed. These are the twelve angles we ended up needing.
- Market definitionDetection, tracking and defeat systems for small drones in; air defense against manned aircraft out.
- Market opportunityWhat stands up to a source check: procurement notices, trial results and published engagement data.
- Market sizeHow we size it ourselves, and why we don't turn incursion counts into a procurement forecast.
- Pain pointsWhat blocks militaries, airports, critical sites and police, ranked from irritating to deal-breaking.
- Tech & infraFrom radar and RF sensing to interceptors, nets and directed energy: what's live, piloted, or promised.
- Value creationSystem sales, sustainment, per-site contracts and services: which ones pay for themselves.
- Market challengesAirspace law, false positives, threat adaptation: scored on how far each could set back this market.
- Growth driversDrone proliferation is the obvious driver. The unglamorous ones decide how fast this grows.
- Investor betsWhich bets investors still make after the first counter-drone wave, and what they now require first.
- Top playersBesides the primes: Dedrone, DroneShield, Fortem, Anduril's counter-UAS line and the quieter vendors.
- Startup killersEffectors that cost more than the threat, permissions you never get, false alarms: why programs stall.
- Startup strategiesWhat the vendors winning repeat contracts did on integration, sustainment and cost per engagement.
Some of the questions we answer inside
Six examples. There are 193+ slides in the deck.
Who may legally act on a drone?
For years only a few federal agencies could stop a drone. How the rules are opening up to police and civil sites, and what lags.
Full answer in the deck
Does detection work in clutter?
Birds, balloons and radio-silent drones still trigger false alarms or slip through. Which detection bottlenecks are fixable.
Full answer in the deck
Does an incursion change the budgets?
NATO jets scrambled over Polish airspace on 10 September 2025, and counter-drone funding ran about 3.4x higher.
Full answer in the deck
Are counter-UAS searchers actually buyers?
Searches for counter-UAS rose with every incursion over an airport, a border or a critical site. We looked at who actually pays.
Full answer in the deck
Can a four-month-old beat DroneShield?
Cambridge Aerospace went from half of DroneShield's value to 2.3 times it in four months, on two rounds.
Full answer in the deckWhy we built this deck
Counter-drone is mostly a cost problem. Using an expensive missile against a cheap drone works once but can’t be repeated for long, so serious buyers now look at the cost of each intercept as closely as at whether the system works.
For years, counter-drone meant spotting hobby drones near airports and prisons, and jamming was often enough. The fighting in Ukraine and the Middle East changed that. Drones now come in large numbers, some can’t be jammed, and buyers want cheaper interceptors, lasers and layered defenses they can field fast.
If you’re building or investing in counter-UAS, you need to know which systems are actually being bought and fielded, who may jam or shoot down a drone over home soil, and which defense contractors are buying their way in. We built this deck to give you that picture quickly, without making you track every procurement notice. And because this market can turn fast, we’ll send you the updated version every quarter.
Save hours of messy research
Weeks of reading, cross-checking and dead ends, already done. Here is what you can check for yourself on every page.
- One view instead of fifty tabsDozens of reports, filings and announcements compressed into a page you read in seconds
- The method is written downHow each number was built is explained on the slide, not hidden in a footnote
- Updated every single quarterNew rounds, new clearances, figures rechecked, and the date printed on the cover
- Our sources and databases are yoursLinks to every source we used, and to the databases behind them, so you can dig yourself
Questions?
What exactly do I get?
A 193+ slide PDF, downloadable right after checkout.
Who is this report for?
Founders, investors, operators and strategists who need a clear view of the market before they build, invest, partner or reposition.
What is your market definition?
Systems that detect, track and defeat small uncrewed aircraft: radar and RF sensing, optical detection, jammers, interceptors, nets, directed energy and command software. Traditional air defense against manned aircraft and drone manufacturing are out.
Do you have funding data?
Yes, we have tracked every single deal, with all the available data: date, company, what it does, category, stage, deal size, HQ country and region, lead and strategic investors, founding year, etc. Email us and we'll send it to you.
Do you have startup data?
Yes, we rank every company we follow, with revenue, valuation and multiple numbers, plus category and segment, so you can sort and compare instead of reading a list. Email us and we'll send it to you.
Can I get future updates?
Yes. We update every deck each quarter. With the complete deck, just send us an email and we'll send you the next update, along with the latest version of both databases.
Can I get a company invoice?
Yes. Add your company name at checkout, or email us and we'll send one.
Any guarantee?
If the deck doesn't hold up to what this page shows, tell us and we'll refund you. No forms.
Is this a one-time payment?
Yes, both options are a single payment. Nothing renews, nothing is charged again, and there is nothing to cancel.
Can I get a discount?
Yes. Use NEWMARKET for 20% off two reports, or NEWMARKETMAX for 30% off five or more. The codes work on any mix of markets.
Still have a question?
Email team@newmarketpitch.com and we reply within 24 hours.
Get the counter-UAS market report
A lot of people misread this market. Jamming stopped working the day drones went fibre-controlled. Here, you'll get the latest, with every number sourced.
A snapshot of today
The essentials
6 of the 12 sections — Updated 5 days ago
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Updated 5 days ago
- Market definition
- Market opportunity
- Market size
- Pain points
- Tech & infra
- Value creation
- Market challenges
- Growth drivers
- Investor bets
- Top players
- Startup killers
- Startup strategies
The full picture
The complete deck
All 12 sections — Updated 5 days ago
$99one-time
Updated 5 days ago
- Market definition
- Market opportunity
- Market size
- Pain points
- Tech & infra
- Value creation
- Market challenges
- Growth drivers
- Investor bets
- Top players
- Startup killers
- Startup strategies
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- Full access to funding and startup data
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