Autonomous combat drone capabilities to get massive expansion with $16 million funding boost

Ukrainian defense tech Buntar Aerospace has raised $16 million in a new financing round to expand production, develop its autonomous systems and enter new markets. The investment brings the company’s total capital raised to $30 million as it looks to build on its experience supplying reconnaissance technology to frontline units in Ukraine. The round was led by Freedom Fund and an international growth equity investor, with participation from Gardar, Iron Wolf and Autonomy Capital. Buntar plans to use the funding to increase manufacturing capacity, recruit engineering and operations talent, and expand beyond intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance into other defense and civilian applications. From reconnaissance drones to multi-domain autonomy Buntar’s existing business is built around two products: the Buntar-3 reconnaissance drone and Buntar Copilot, an AI-powered software system designed to support drone operations in combat. The company says the combination has established a growing customer base among Ukrainian frontline units. Its next step is to extend that experience into a broader range of autonomous defense systems. Co-founder Bohdan Sas said the company is focusing on missions that place heavy demands on skilled operators, including reconnaissance, counter-drone defense and precision-strike assistance. “We’re targeting the missions that depend most on highly trained operators: reconnaissance, counter-drone defence and precision strike assistance. That’s what Ukraine needs today, and what Europe must be ready for tomorrow,” Sas said in a statement. The main idea of the company is to automate parts of these missions so personnel can concentrate on operational decisions rather than manually managing every aspect of a drone’s flight or sensor operation. In turn, that could become vital as militaries deploy larger numbers of unmanned systems and face pressure to train operators faster. Buntar also plans to expand its dual-use product lines, applying technologies developed for defense to civilian markets. Autonomous systems have potential applications beyond the battlefield, although the company has not detailed specific new products or commercial markets it intends to enter. Ukraine’s defense industry faces a different R&D equation Buntar’s expansion comes as European defense technology attracts growing investor interest. According to figures cited in the company’s announcement from Dealroom, European defense-tech startups have raised $7.4 billion in venture capital this year, while drone startups have secured $4.7 billion across 40 funding rounds. US investors account for 47% of European defense-tech funding, highlighting the importance of international capital to the sector. For Ukrainian companies, however, building defense technology involves a different set of constraints from those faced by startups operating in more established procurement systems. Sas argues that Europe’s rising defense budgets should prioritize drones, software and trained operators rather than relying primarily on traditional military hardware. His argument reflects lessons from Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, where unmanned systems have become central to reconnaissance, targeting and battlefield operations. Buntar says its new funding will help it expand manufacturing while continuing to invest in research and development, rather than treating product development and production as separate stages. The company’s longer-term ambition, however, is to evolve from a supplier of reconnaissance technology into a multi-domain defense autonomy business with international reach.Get the latest in engineering, tech, space & science - delivered daily to your inbox.Bojan Stojkovski is a freelance journalist based in Skopje, North Macedonia, covering foreign policy and technology for more than a decade. His work has appeared in Foreign Policy, ZDNet, and Nature.