Drone Tech Fast-Tracked With Red Cat, ESAero Partnership

Red Cat is partnering with aerospace engineering firm ESAero to help with “fast-tracked, customer-specific” products.

Under the collaboration, ESAero will bring its engineering expertise to help develop bespoke products for customers, acting as add-ons to drones created by Red Cat subsidiary Teal Drones.

“We’re proud to be working with ESAero,” said George Matus, Teal Drones’ CEO. "We’ve been impressed by their engineering skill set and understanding of market requirements. Having them lead important ad-hoc projects benefits our customers by rapidly giving them what they need and benefitting Teal by allowing us to focus on production ramping and core R&D.”

ESAero also brings its secure facility to the partnership, offering a government-accredited site where classified or sensitive projects can be carried out. 

“Like Red Cat, we’re focused on innovation and elevating what’s possible in the field of manned and unmanned aircraft,” said Andrew Gibson, ESAero’s CEO. “We’re looking forward to further developing our partnership with Red Cat through future projects.”

The first product created under the partnership is a multi-battery charger, designed by ESAero for use as an add-on to the Teal 2 drone, extending charge times and prolonging battery life. 

Related:Teal Drones Receives $2.6M Purchase From US Defense Logistics Agency

The charger is also compatible with Teal 2 drone’s ground control station, offering a one-stop charging solution. 

The Teal 2 drone is designed specifically for night-time missions, equipped with thermal imaging sensors to provide real-time information to operators on the ground. 

Teal has been expanding the capabilities of its military drone over the past year. Teal 2 received approval for government use in June. Its remote ID certification technology, which enables identification and location information to other parties via a broadcast signal, was approved by the FAA in August.

According to Red Cat’s revenue projections, announced alongside the ESAero partnership, Teal Drones’ provides the majority of its revenue, and is projected to continue to do so over the coming years. 

“The Teal team brought a brand new product, the Teal 2, from zero revenue to almost $10 million in sales in just four months,” said Jeff Thompson, Red Cat’s CEO. “We expect to be at a $20 million revenue run-rate next quarter, our fiscal Q3.”

According to Thompson, this projected revenue is anticipated to come primarily from the Department of Defense’s recently announced Replicator Initiative, under which the DOD will purchase “thousands of small, smart drones to counter threats from China and other countries.”