DroneTrace receives Aerospace & defense Review AI Award
DroneTrace named Top AI-Driven Tactical Exploitation Platform 2026 by Aerospace & Defense Review
Aerospace & Defense Review named DroneTrace its Top AI-Driven Tactical Exploitation Platform for 2026, recognizing the platform's work turning captured unmanned systems (UxS) into usable intelligence at the tactical edge.
DroneTrace co-founders Liam Bowers and Joseph DePlato started the company in 2024, after U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) issued an urgent statement seeking technology that could extract and exploit drone data at the tactical edge. Bowers brings more than two decades in U.S. Army Special Operations; DePlato brings a background in digital forensics, AI, and space technologies.
"We want to enhance their ability to make rapid, effective decisions in the field," Bowers said.
DroneTrace Edge, the company's handheld device, runs multiple AI models locally, with no internet connection required. It identifies a captured drone's point of origin, flight path, prior flights, and stored imagery, all while preserving the underlying data through forensically sound methods. Operators can share that intelligence across units through the Tactical Assault Kit/Team Awareness Kit (TAK) network, or send it to DroneTrace Cloud for deeper forensic work.
