DroneShield secures R&D Tax Incentive

Sydney-based DroneShield has received a $2 million R&D Tax Incentive as a cash payment from the Australian government. The payment, awarded for DroneShield’s R&D work throughout 2021, represents the largest recorded government incentive since the company’s inception.

Oleg Vornik, DroneShield’s CEO, said the award is a reflection of the company’s continual growth in the counter-UAS space, both domestically and abroad.

“This record grant receipt reflects the unique R&D work that we do, here in Australia,”  he said. “DroneShield appreciates the substantial support it receives from the Australian government, through grants and export support for overseas sales, alongside of our current and under-proposal contracts with the Australian Defence Force,” Vornik said.

Employing more than 40 engineers, DroneShield has grown to be an Australian-based global leader in artificial intelligence, electronic warfare and adjacent technologies, which are becoming increasingly in demand in current uncertain times around the world, he added.

The announcement of the government incentive comes less than a week after an undisclosed US government agency placed a repeat order valued at approximately $500,000 for DroneShield’s counter-UAS products.

The deal builds on recent sales to the ADF and to the US armed forces earlier this year and the company’s announcement last month it had teamed with the Australian Missile Corporation to pursue the Australian government’s $1 billion Sovereign Guided Weapon and Explosive Ordnance Enterprise (GWEO) program.

The counter-UAS firm is the latest company to join the consortium, building on a growing list of 350 Australian and international partners from the defence and aerospace industries, as well as research institutions and state and territory governments.