Defense Autonomy Spending Surges as AI Reshapes the Battlefield
Issued on behalf of VisionWave Holdings
NEW YORK, Feb. 17, 2026 /CNW/ -- USANewsGroup.com News Commentary – Congress passed an $839 billion defense spending bill for fiscal 2026, the Pentagon's first full-year appropriation since fiscal 2024, directing $9.8 billion toward autonomous and unmanned systems across the Department of Defense[1]. The DOD's total IT budget reached $66 billion, a $1.8 billion increase from 2025, with every service branch increasing its AI allocation and the Navy alone adding $308 million in AI spending, a 22.7% year-over-year jump[2]. VisionWave Holdings (NASDAQ:VWAV), Ondas Holdings (NASDAQ:ONDS), Draganfly (NASDAQ:DPRO), BlackSky Technology (NYSE:BKSY), and Mercury Systems (NASDAQ:MRCY) are among the companies operating across these converging defense technology sectors.
The Space Force received $26 billion in direct appropriations, with an additional $13.8 billion in mandatory spending for missile defense satellite systems under the Golden Dome architecture, pushing combined resources toward $40 billion[3]. The global counter-UAS market, valued at $2.08 billion in 2025, is projected to reach $19.06 billion by 2035 as drone threats accelerate demand for detection and neutralization systems[4]. From space-based infrared tracking to AI-powered cargo inspection, the technology stack underpinning modern defense is shifting toward smarter, faster, and more autonomous systems.
VisionWave Holdings (NASDAQ:VWAV) has entered into a $10 million Statement of Work for the development of qSpeed-Mine, a cryptocurrency mining acceleration and orchestration platform built on the company's QuantumSpeed computational acceleration engine.
The fixed-fee, milestone-based SOW spans approximately 32 weeks, with $350,000 paid upon contract execution and the remaining balance tied directly to verified technical delivery and operational performance.
Approximately $1.0 million is earned through proof-of-concept completion, $6.0 million across scaled deployment and operational validation, and $3.0 million upon final delivery and full program acceptance. If milestones proceed as planned, the full $10 million in revenue is structured for recognition during calendar year 2026.
The platform targets existing mining infrastructure, designed to increase effective throughput and reduce non-productive overhead through advanced scheduling, orchestration, and latency reduction rather than requiring wholesale hardware replacement.
By improving how work is coordinated and executed across distributed systems, the platform aims to substantially reduce the cost of mining per unit of output.
The engagement calls for production-scale deployment across a distributed environment of up to 1,000 nodes, governed by reproducible benchmarks and KPI-driven acceptance gates. VisionWave views the SOW as the transition point for QuantumSpeed from acquisition thesis to paid commercial execution.
"This is about extracting materially more value from the infrastructure that already exists," said Dr. Danny Rittman, Chief Technology Officer of VisionWave. "The goal of QuantumSpeed is to improve system-level efficiency by optimizing how work is coordinated and executed at scale, which directly impacts unit economics without changing cryptographic assumptions."
VisionWave intends to use this engagement as the first commercial anchor for broader QuantumSpeed sales across additional compute-intensive markets, including AI/ML, defense, and large-scale infrastructure optimization. The company's wholly owned subsidiary Solar Drone recently reported executive meetings in Italy advancing business development for drone cleaning solutions in select Middle Eastern markets, following live demonstrations of its patented high-pressure drone payload system across multiple Italian sites.
VisionWave Holdings also demonstrated real-world performance of SaverOne's RF-based Vulnerable Road User detection before a major vehicle manufacturer, where the system identified pedestrians and flagged trajectory risks pre-visual contact, including detecting hidden individuals in darkness.
The company established a $7.0 million strategic exchange with SaverOne that could yield 51% fully diluted ownership, while continuing to advance its dual-market autonomous systems platform integrating QuantumSpeed with AI-driven sensing and autonomy technologies for defense, homeland security, and commercial infrastructure applications.
CONTINUED… Read this and more news for VisionWave Holdings at:
In other industry developments:
Ondas Holdings subsidiary 4M Defense was recently awarded a large-scale multi-year demining program in Israel after winning a competitive tender valued at over $30 million. The project covers approximately 741 acres of historically contaminated and strategically sensitive terrain along the Israel-Syria border, representing one of the largest land-clearance efforts ever undertaken in the country, with an initial execution period of up to three years and options for extensions and scope expansion beyond the original contract.
"This award reflects the increasing demand for advanced, technology-driven approaches to land clearance in complex and high-risk defense environments" said Eric Brock, Chairman and CEO of **Ondas**. "4M Defense has developed a differentiated smart demining capability that combines autonomy, robotics, and aerial intelligence to dramatically improve safety, speed, and operational efficiency. This project validates both the scale and strategic importance of autonomous demining within our growing defense portfolio."
Ondas expects this deployment to serve as a reference program for future large-scale autonomous demining and land-intelligence projects globally. The award further strengthens the company's position in Israel, a global center for defense innovation, and expands its role across the full border security lifecycle through its system-of-systems strategy that combines multiple autonomous platforms, sensors, and analytical tools into a unified operational framework.
Draganfly was also recently awarded a contract to provide Flex FPV drones and comprehensive training to U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command units through a partnership with DelMar Aerospace Corporation, a leading provider of advanced uncrewed aircraft systems training and tactics for U.S. Government customers. Initial training activities cover first-person-view UAS instruction including FPV assembly, repair, flight operations, and advanced mission planning, with the first cohort scheduled for mid-February at DelMar Aerospace's Camp Pendleton UAS range facility.
"Our shared focus is on readiness and combat capability" said Cameron Chell, CEO of Draganfly. "Partnering with DelMar Aerospace helps ensure operators are training on systems and tactics designed for real-world conditions, with the Flex's modularity and reliability required to adapt as missions and threats evolve."
The Flex FPV serves as a modular backbone for future small UAS configurations, uniquely capable of meeting evolving Department of War operational requirements through rapid transition across operating profiles. Its innovative design allows varied flight characteristics and payload capacities to be deployed from a single unit, enabling widespread adoption through a common training and sustainment baseline while delivering a unique and compelling value proposition to tactical drone programs across the rapidly growing defense sector.
BlackSky Technology has been awarded multiple Gen-3 Assured services contracts totaling seven figures with a new international defense customer following a successful early access period. The expansion deals mark a rapid customer shift toward adopting advanced space-based dynamic monitoring capabilities to support time-sensitive tactical ISR operational needs, with dedicated priority access to Gen-3 satellite capacity over designated operational areas of interest.
"This partnership reflects continued traction against our land-and-expand strategy and demonstrates the growing recognition that dynamic space-based intelligence is no longer optional, it's essential" said Brian O'Toole, CEO of BlackSky. "Assured gives our customers guaranteed, priority access to Gen-3 capacity over their operational areas of interest. The quality and reliability of collections experienced during early access programs play a key factor in compelling customers to renew their subscriptions."
BlackSky's continued international expansion reflects increased demand for agile, responsive space-based intelligence capabilities across defense and intelligence organizations worldwide. Gen-3 imagery enables automated detection, identification, and classification of aircraft, vehicles, vessels, and other objects of tactical interest at machine speed, with the company's fully automated end-to-end commercial architecture delivering real-time situational awareness at mission speed and scale for customers navigating a highly fluid geopolitical landscape.
Mercury Systems recently reported Q2 2026 results that exceeded expectations, with revenue of $233 million and bookings of $288 million yielding a 1.23 book-to-bill ratio. The company achieved record backlog approaching $1.5 billion, up 8.8% year-over-year, with adjusted EBITDA of $30 million growing 36.3% year-over-year and free cash flow of $46 million, well ahead of internal forecasts.
"We delivered second quarter fiscal 2026 results that were ahead of our expectations, with solid year-over-year growth in backlog, revenue, and adjusted EBITDA, and robust free cash flow" said Bill Ballhaus, Chairman and CEO of **Mercury Systems**. "Our ability to accelerate progress on a number of our customers' high-priority programs once again contributed to strong results this quarter, including record first-half revenue."
Mercury Systems posted GAAP net loss of $15 million, or $0.26 per share, improving from a loss of $0.30 per share in the year-ago quarter, while adjusted EPS more than doubled to $0.16 from $0.07. With $807 million of its record backlog expected to convert to revenue within the next 12 months and operating cash flow of $52 million, the company remains well positioned for continued momentum across its defense electronics portfolio heading into the second half of fiscal 2026.
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SOURCES:
- https://www.defensenews.com/congress/2026/01/20/us-lawmakers-release-839b-compromise-defense-spending-bill/
- https://www.washingtontechnology.com/opinion/2026/02/dods-66b-it-budget-pivots-ai-and-efficiency/411370/
- https://spacenews.com/defense-appropriations-bill-for-2026-funds-space-force-at-26-billion-presses-pentagon-on-golden-dome/
- https://www.precedenceresearch.com/counter-unmanned-aerial-system-market
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