Trump's Drone Policy Drives Major Rally in Related Stocks
Miles Bennett
The Pentagon expanded its Drone Dominance program from 11 teams to 48 with a $1.1 billion budget, targeting 200,000 kamikaze drones a year by next year; drone and battery stocks surged on the news, signaling a wartime-speed push to close a massive production gap.
Which stocks jumped the most?
Drone parts maker Unusual Machines soared 115% in a single week; manufacturers Red Cat Holdings rose 59% and AeroVironment gained 26%.
This means → the market's biggest bet went to the companies closest to the battlefield — parts makers showed the most upside.
Battery stocks rallied in tandem: silicon-anode maker Amprius up 30%, Enovix up 26%, lithium-metal startup SES AI up 15%.
What is the Pentagon's plan actually trying to do?
The Drone Dominance program announced its expansion on May 22: competing teams grew from 11 to 48, with a total budget of $1.1 billion.
The core target: raise U.S. annual output of kamikaze drones — single-use drones that detonate on impact — to 200,000 by next year.
Next up is a 12-day "gauntlet" test evaluating not just combat performance but high-volume, low-cost manufacturing — a steep bar for small startups with no mass-production base.
How far behind is U.S. production?
U.S. firms delivered roughly 50,000 drones to the Pentagon last year; Russia produced about 4 million for the Ukraine front, and Iran about 140,000.
In plain terms = U.S. output is 1/80th of Russia's and less than half of Iran's — that gap is the fundamental reason the policy is accelerating.
Batteries face a similar constraint: China dominates global battery production, and teams in the program currently rely mainly on cells from South Korea and Taiwan.
Is the government planning to take equity stakes?
The Wall Street Journal reported that the Pentagon is considering loans and equity stakes in several drone startups, including Unusual Machines.
This reflects the same logic as earlier equity moves in mining companies: the government is willing to deploy capital, not just contracts, to shore up critical supply chains.
A notable conflict of interest: President Trump's eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., is an investor and adviser at Unusual Machines.
Are the battery companies ready?
California-based Amprius Technologies says its factory can supply batteries for up to 5 million kamikaze drones a year and is already shipping to multiple competing teams.
But CEO Tom Stepien conceded he is unsure how many teams will actually use its product in the upcoming tests — order conversion remains uncertain.
Silicon-anode developer Sila Nanotechnologies and lithium-metal startup Natrion also say they are working with multiple teams, as competition in the battery lane heats up.
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