As U.S. President Donald Trump expands a crackdown on "drug terror organizations" across the Caribbean, U.S. defense Start - Ups with drone and artificial intelligence (AI) technology are securing new markets. Analysts say technologies previously deployed in military operations are being quickly converted for drug enforcement, driving new demand in the government and defense institutional sector.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 29th (local time) that as the U.S. military and government turn their attention to the southern border, defense Start - Ups are rolling out technologies tailored to a new form of conflict rather than traditional war.
AI, high-performance sensors, and precision cameras developed for the war in Ukraine or strategies to check China are being repurposed as drug enforcement platforms as President Trump's hard-line anti-drug stance gains prominence. Related corporations are also shifting their brand strategies to respond.
Drone company Shield AI leveraged reconnaissance technology used in the Middle East to deploy its V-BAT drone in U.S. Coast Guard drug interdiction operations, producing results. In a recent operation at the Port of Everglades in Florida, it reportedly helped seize about 27,000 kilograms of cocaine.
The Coast Guard evaluated a single V-BAT as efficient enough to replace the missions of 10 small speedboats, explaining it can identify drug-running vessels in real time across roughly 1.6 million square kilometers of waters. They emphasized that drones are filling missions difficult to carry out with personnel and ships alone.
AI analytics Start - Up Vannevar Labs is also providing a platform the U.S. government needs to map drug supply chains and monitor shifts in public opinion related to sinking drug-running vessels. The company said, "New revenue is emerging in unexpected areas."
From the perspective of defense corporations, the drug enforcement environment is also far simpler than a battlefield. There is no electronic warfare or jamming as in Ukraine, and unlike operations preparing for a Taiwan contingency, it is not long-distance, reducing the burden of applying technology.
The U.S. Ministry of National Defense is keeping pace with this trend. In September, the Defense Innovation Unit asked Start - Ups to develop technology that can stop the operation of small boats without posing significant risk to people.
As changes in U.S. drug enforcement strategy take hold as a new application for advanced defense technology, the "war on drugs" is emerging as a growth engine for defense Start - Ups.