Nearthlab Launches Mortar-carrying AI Drone, Eyes Over 10 Bil. Won in Revenue

Overseas Orders Contribute to Projected 100% Revenue Increase

A next-generation swarm autonomous flight attack drone developed by Nearthlab

Advanced nations are actively introducing drones equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) to strengthen their defense capabilities. This is because drones are less expensive compared to other military weapons and demonstrate excellent performance in various mission execution and functional aspects. AI drones boast superior autonomy and accuracy compared to conventional unmanned aerial vehicles, as they can make their own judgments to identify targets, set routes, and perform swarm flights.

AI drone startup Nearthlab is garnering significant attention not only in the domestic market but also overseas, emerging as a key player in the next-generation defense drone market. Industry analysts evaluate the company as possessing world-class capabilities in developing autonomous drone solutions. Nearthlab’s strength is its ability to produce high-performance products at a competitive price, based on its advanced AI technology.

Following the launch of its high-speed interceptor defense drone, "KAiDEN," last year, the company introduced an attack drone, "XAiDEN," to the market early this year. While KAiDEN is specialized in eliminating unidentified drones in the sky, XAiDEN is characterized by its ability to precisely strike not only drones but also large moving vehicles and multiple targets.

XAiDEN is a next-generation swarm autonomous flight attack drone that performs dynamic missions such as cooperative reconnaissance, autonomous tracking, and precision strikes through a swarm control system developed in-house by Nearthlab. XAiDEN operates by having about 10 drones stored together, which then separate one by one to perform swarm flights when a mission command is given. Typically, 10 drones fly together in one squadron, and a single person can operate up to 10 squadrons.

The interior of the XAiDEN airframe is designed to carry a 60mm mortar shell by default, eliminating the need to produce separate weapons for the attack drone. This allows the military to adopt XAiDEN more quickly and efficiently. Furthermore, Nearthlab plans to design the interior of XAiDEN in a cartridge format to enable the loading of various types of shells.

Moreover, XAiDEN can complete its missions without issue using its AI capabilities even if communication or satellite navigation signals are jammed during wartime. It is also characterized by enhanced cost-effectiveness, as only one leader drone out of a total of 10 is equipped with communication functions, while the remaining 9 drones follow the leader to attack.

Nearthlab emphasizes that its AI drone XAiDEN has a mission completion rate close to 100%. The company explains that because a swarm of 10 or more drones performs the mission, even if one drone’s attack fails, other drones can immediately launch additional attacks to completely eliminate the target.

The company anticipates that its defense-related revenue from KAiDEN and XAiDEN will begin to expand in earnest this year. The value of recent orders from foreign militaries and defense system companies is reportedly in the range of several billion won. If this revenue is newly added to this year’s performance, the company is expected to achieve a revenue growth rate of over 100% year-on-year, with annual revenue surpassing 10 billion won. Last year, Nearthlab recorded approximately 5.5 billion won in revenue, most of which came from its existing wind turbine safety inspection business, not the defense sector.

Nearthlab plans to continue strengthening its technological capabilities in the defense drone sector and proceed with the development of second-generation versions of KAiDEN and XAiDEN. Choi Jae-hyuk, CEO of Nearthlab, stated, “AI drones are closely related to national defense, so it is more important than any other field to secure true ‘sovereign’ technology.” He added, “As a company that produces and develops national strategic materials, we will fulfill our responsibilities.”