Defense autonomy startup Rownd has secured a $10 million contract with the Department of War as it develops low-cost, autonomous drones designed for military operations. The company is also expanding its operations in Wisconsin and North Carolina, adding jobs and investing in drone research and development.
Headquartered in Raleigh, NC, Rownd is focused on what the defense industry calls attritable mass: deploying drones that are affordable enough to be replaced if lost in combat. The approach aims to give military forces more autonomous systems without relying on expensive platforms that are difficult to replace.
Rownd’s technology is designed to let drones process information and make decisions onboard rather than depend on constant cloud connectivity or centralized ground control. Its AI software also enables drones to communicate and coordinate with one another, including when a swarm loses its connection to external networks.
The company recently put those capabilities to the test during a three-day exercise with Air Force personnel in Alabama. Rownd’s quadcopters completed 41 flights, including four mobile flights and four fleet tests using onboard AI. The exercise also marked the company’s first drone swarm demonstration, with up to three aircraft flying simultaneously.
Rownd used the exercise to demonstrate another part of its development process: improving its AI models using real-world flight data. Each night, the team retrained the drones’ computer-vision models using data collected during the day’s flights and uploaded the updated models before the next day’s missions. According to the company, this process significantly improved accuracy.
The rapid feedback loop is central to Rownd’s approach to defense autonomy, allowing software, AI models, and hardware performance to improve based on operational experience.
“At Rownd, we’re focused on attritable mass,” says Robert Thelen, the company’s CEO and cofounder. He describes the goal as making drones easy to launch, control and replace, while prioritizing the safety of American soldiers.
The company also plans to expand its workforce, creating 22 jobs across Wisconsin and North Carolina. The positions are expected to include advanced manufacturing and autonomy development roles. Further, as part of that expansion, Rownd will open a drone research and development center in Richfield, Wisconsin, on October 27.
Backed by Y Combinator, Rownd was founded by a combat veteran and former IBM employees. The company says it has multiple Department of War contracts as it works to develop economical autonomous systems for national security applications.
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