Sterling drone-jamming firm to be acquired by Taser maker Axon

Dedrone, a Sterling-based maker of drone-jamming and detection devices, has reached an agreement to be acquired by Scottsdale, Arizona-based Taser manufacturer Axon Enterprise.

The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2024, the companies announced Monday, and terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Dedrone’s portable gunlike jammers can thwart aerial drones by disrupting communications links with targeted radio pulses. The company has worked with police departments, the U.S. Army and other military and commercial clients. Dedrone has partnered with the Ukrainian government to provide nearly 300 sensors capable of identifying and detecting radio signatures of nearly 250 different models of drones, according to Dedrone’s website. It has also sent riflelike devices to Ukraine that have been used to jam Russian drones, according to The New York Times.

Dedrone uses AI and machine learning to “provide continuous autonomous interrogation and verification of drones.” Its devices can be used to detect and deter unwanted drones over places such as military bases, airports and public events.

Axon, formerly known as Taser International, is best known for its Taser devices, as well as body cameras, in-car cameras and cloud-based digital evidence management platforms. Its customers include first responders, such as local, state and federal law enforcement officers.

“Dedrone will strengthen Axon’s ability to help customers safeguard their communities, improve response to critical incidents and protect even more lives in more places,” the companies wrote in a news release announcing the acquisition. 

“By combining Axon’s 30-year legacy of innovation with Dedrone’s cutting-edge airspace security solutions, we aim to revolutionize public safety once again,” Axon founder and CEO Rick Smith said in a statement. “Together, we will accelerate our efforts in creating a more advanced end-to-end drone solution that enables the good drones to fly and helps ensure the bad ones don’t.”

Axon rebranded from being called Taser International in 2017. Axon reported revenue growth of 34% for the first quarter of 2024 and reported recurring revenue growth of $825 million.

Dedrone was founded in February 2014. The company has raised more than $100 million since 2015.

“Dedrone’s growing impact across industries such as federal governments, utilities and critical infrastructure, event venues, airports, correctional facilities and other enterprises, coupled with Axon’s powerful ecosystem of connected devices and software, will put us at the forefront of ensuring not only the safety of our communities but also the security of nations around the world,” Dedrone CEO Aaditya Devarakonda said in a statement.