E-Paper
From Florida to Rawalpindi: The Trump-linked US drone company at the centre of Pakistan defence MoU
The meeting emphasized long-term defense collaboration between the U.S. and Pakistan amid a warming political relationship.
Prefer HTon Google
American drone company Powerus on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Pakistan Army, which included an initial order for drone-related equipment, its co-founder Brett Velicovich said.
The MoU was signed after a Powerus delegation, led by Velicovich, met Pakistan army chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir in Rawalpindi. The value of the order was not disclosed.
Velicovich, a former US Army Special Forces intelligence officer who had served in Afghanistan, cited "security sensitivities" and confidentiality for the non-disclosure, Reuters reported.
The Pakistan military's media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), confirmed the meeting and said the two sides discussed "defence procurement, production and long-term capacity building". Its statement did not mention the MoU.
Powerus was incorporated only last year, in 2025, and is preparing to list on the Nasdaq through a reverse-merger with an unrelated Florida golf-course operator. The merged entity will count the two elder sons of US President Donald Trump – Donald Trump Jr and Eric Trump – among its indirect backers.
A look at what Powerus is, what it makes, what we know of the Pakistan MoU, and why it is happening now:
About the company
Powerus is the trading name of Autonomous Power Corporation, a company registered in 2025 and based in West Palm Beach, Florida, according to the Financial Times and Bloomberg. Its chief executive and chairman is Andrew Fox, an entrepreneur. Its president and co-founder is Velicovich.
On its website, the company describes itself as building "US-led autonomous systems for defence and critical infrastructure". It lists "heavy-lift drones, tactical UAVs, autonomous maritime vessels" among its product lines.
Fox told the Financial Times that the company's ambitions in Pakistan go well beyond a single contract. "Pakistan has the opportunity not only diplomatically but economically, to create industry here, create jobs, and create export opportunities. This is more than a one-off for us. This is the establishment of a long-term relationship," he said.
Also Read | Trump sons’ drone push to Gulf nations facing Iranian attacks: ‘Wave of the future’
Production
The company's public product line is anchored by a small counter-drone system called the Guardian, and its refined version, the Guardian-1 interceptor. The Guardian is built to shoot down the cheap, one-way attack drones that Iran and Russia have used at scale, including the Iranian Shahed-136 and its Russian variant, the Geran-2.
On its product page, Powerus lists a burst speed (maximum speed the drone can hold briefly) of about 340 kmph for the interceptor, a cruise speed of 160 kmph, a range of about 15 km, and an endurance of about 28 minutes. According to FT, the Guardian sells for about $5,000 a unit.
The commercial pitch for these drones is focused on the cost.
On its website, Powerus argues that "current intercept (machinery that can intercept kamikaze drones such as the Iranian Shaheds) costs $500,000 to $2 million per shot against drones costing only around $20,000 fail at scale". A cheap interceptor, it says, is the only way to defeat a swarm of cheap drones without exhausting more expensive air-defence stockpiles.
Beyond interceptors, Powerus builds heavy-lift drones, tactical unmanned aircraft, and autonomous surface vessels for maritime use.
The FT reported that Powerus has licensed drone technology from Ukraine, where mass-produced drones dominate the war with Russia, and has acquired other companies specialising in low-cost systems built to carry heavy loads.
Production appears to be scaling up quickly. According to FT, Powerus makes about 3,000 interceptors a month and is targeting a fivefold increase over the next year. It signed a $90 million contract to supply interceptors to the US Air Force in August 2026, and has been assembling interceptors at a facility in the United Arab Emirates since July 2026.
The Pakistan MoU is also not the company's first commercial contract in West Asia. In August, Powerus announced a $22.3 million agreement with an undisclosed energy company in the Persian Gulf to supply counter-drone technology to protect oil and gas infrastructure. The system, according to Reuters, covers hardware, software, site activation, installation and a 24-month maintenance programme.
Also Read | Iran war exposes chinks in Mecca pact: Why Pakistan’s newfound relevance may be more hype than heft
What we know of the Pakistan MoU
Powerus has said two things publicly about the Pakistan MoU. The Financial Times report, citing the co-founders and a person briefed on the matter in Islamabad, said that the MoU is a framework for joint ventures to move drone manufacturing into Pakistan, and provides for the sale of both drones and interceptor products to the Pakistan military.
Velicovich told Reuters the goal was "a joint technology relationship, pairing best-in-breed technology from the US with best-in-breed technology from Pakistan", and that the company was exploring ways to potentially build technology in Pakistan.
Powerus has not disclosed the size or value of the initial order, or which specific systems it covers.
Munir-Trump ties
The MoU has been signed against the backdrop of a warming political relationship between Washington and Islamabad.
Munir has met Trump personally after months of shuttle diplomacy on a US-Iran ceasefire. Trump has publicly called him a "favourite field marshal", and Islamabad has followed up with parallel initiatives on cryptocurrency, critical minerals and defence.
Another key occurrence appears to be a policy shift on US drone exports. Velicovich told FT, "I think, for many decades, the US government has been opposed to providing [drone] systems to countries like Pakistan while China has blanketly provided whatever the people here want," he said, adding: "That created some dependency where it probably shouldn't have been. But now we are seeing a sort of awakening of US policy, even outside of Pakistan, to share more of our drone systems."
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), China supplied 81% of Pakistan’s arms imports in 2020-24, up from 74% in the previous five-year period. It was also the world's fifth-largest arms importer over the same period, behind only Ukraine, India, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, the SIPRI report said.
According to FT, Islamabad is trying to rebuild its air defences after last year's brief but fierce conflict with India, in which armed drones from India reached deep into Pakistani cities, in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack in Kashmir.
Also Read | Pakistani Army chief Asim Munir ‘spoke’ to Trump before Tehran visit amid rising US-Iran tensions
Where the Trump family fits
Powerus is preparing to go public through a merger with Aureus Greenway Holdings Inc, a small Nasdaq-listed golf-course operator based in Florida. Both the companies expect the deal to close in early October.
The FT reports that the merger was brokered by Dominari Securities, a boutique investment bank in which Donald Trump Jr and Eric Trump are both shareholders.
The Trump sons' stake in Aureus is held indirectly, through an investment fund called American Ventures LLC. Regulatory filings say American Ventures is expected to hold about 9.9% of the combined company after the merger closes. The two brothers are also expected to invest directly in the merged entity through a special-purpose vehicle called American Venture Partners.
The company and the Trump family have both distanced themselves from allegations that political connections drove the Pakistan MoU.
Fox told Reuters that contracts were awarded on merit and that the Trump sons had "no involvement on the business side" of the company.
A spokesperson for Donald Trump Jr told Reuters: "Don has no involvement whatsoever in the management or operations of Powerus and plays absolutely no role in the procurement of contracts in the United States or abroad. He had no prior knowledge of this deal and had no involvement of any kind in its negotiation, procurement or execution." Eric Trump could not be reached for comment.
Anna Kelly, White House special assistant to the President and principal deputy press secretary, said, "There are no conflicts of interest."
