Why Tekever, a startup that makes spy drones used in Ukraine, is banking on AI

Catapult for the Tekever AR3 drone takeoff.

The war in Ukraine has put a spotlight on drone technology over the last few years.

From one-way and first-person-view attack drones to naval and reconnaissance drones, the Russia-Ukraine war has been defined by the large-scale deployment of these unmanned systems.

While the rise of the technology has led to much speculation over the future of warfare, it has also fueled increasing competition in the defense industry, with many firms now vying to produce the next cutting-edge uncrewed vehicles.

One such company is Tekever, a Portuguese drone maker that recently secured funding from the NATO Innovation Fund.

Founded in 2001 by a team of computer scientists, Tekever produces drones for aerial surveillance that have been used by both military and civilian organizations around the world.

But rather than seeing itself as a traditional drone maker, the Lisbon-based company says it is more “software- and AI-first,” offering customers real-time Intelligence-as-a-Service through three main product lines — the AR5, the AR4, and the AR3 drones. It also announced a new system called the ARX earlier this year.

“What we do is real-time intelligence over very wide areas,” Ricardo Mendes, the CEO and cofounder of Tekever, told B-17. “The planes themselves are just a means to carry sensors to where they need to be, ensuring data reaches the right people at the right time.”

Through Tekever’s “Atlas” software platform, users can plan their drones’ flights ahead of operations, adding points of interest or vessels of interest they want to check out.

During missions, Tekever then collects data from sensors on board the drones, which AI and machine learning models use to provide intelligence for the user, Sanaz Zadegan, Tekever’s digital director, said in a video on the company’s website.

“During a live mission, the user is able to see, in real time, data coming from the aircraft’s onboard sensors, be it positional data or footage from its onboard sensors,” she said. “The machine learning algorithms and artificial intelligence systems backing up the Atlas system, in real time also processes this data in order to give actionable intelligence to the client by analyzing those data and analyzing patterns.”

Tekever’s drones are equipped with multiple sensors, including cameras, maritime radar, synthetic aperture radar (SAR), and light detection and ranging (LIDAR).

“From an AI perspective, these drones are treasure troves of data, collecting valuable information that’s often hard to obtain,” the company says.

“We’re basically very good at being able to retrieve extremely precise information in places that are very difficult to reach because they’re far away, behind their defenses and so forth,” Mendes added.

Two of Tekever’s systems, the AR5 and AR3, have been used by Ukrainian forces for long-range surveillance operations in the war with Russia.

The AR5 unmanned system is designed to carry out maritime surveillance operations, while the smaller AR3, which has vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) capacity, is designed to support both land and maritime operations, the company says on its website.

One challenge facing drones in Ukraine is the increasing use of electronic warfare systems, which use the electromagnetic spectrum to jam certain signals.

But Tekever’s AI-powered drones can operate without relying on GPS or comms, helping them evade some jamming systems.

AI-enabled drones have become increasingly sought after in Ukraine this year, as both Moscow and Kyiv have searched for new ways to overcome electronic warfare defenses.

Robert Brovdi, the founder and commander of Ukraine’s “Madyar’s Birds” special drone unit, said in a conversation with The Economist in September that Ukraine’s drone force could shift to AI systems within as little as six months.

He added that the drones would be “pilotless completely without any operators.”

And that’s why Tekever is trying to stay ahead of the game.

“The reality is that any company in this space that doesn’t fully embrace AI is at risk of becoming obsolete,” Nicolas van Hanxleden Houwert, Tekever’s head of Data & AI, wrote.

A Ukrainian Volunteer Army member hurls a surveillance drone into the air. 

Looking ahead, Mendes said he sees the future of surveillance rooted in autonomous systems and interconnected networks, with larger drones carrying swarms of smaller drones to extend operational capabilities.

Tekever is also hoping to increase its presence in the UK, where it already operates a site in Southampton.

“We want to be able to scale production there, to scale R&D, to scale product development,” Mendes said.