The brief

Analyst view

• Founded 1994, pivoted to defense under CEO Eric DeMarco in 2004. Now a major supplier of autonomous aircraft for the U.S. military.
• In 2026 Kratos ships 15–20 XQ-58 Valkyries to USMC. $231.5M Northrop contract extends through January 2028.
• NASDAQ ticker KTOS trades ~13x revenue; 2026 guidance $1.75–$1.81B.

Technical approach

As reported

Cost

High-volume, eventually low-cost per airframe

Current cost runs $4–6M per airframe. With 100+ units annually, costs drop to ~$2M, beating expensive crewed fighters.

Autonomy

Autonomous, human-authorized weapons

Flies and navigates itself via GPS and terrain mapping. A human must authorize each weapon release for rules of engagement and accountability.

Launch

Catapult or rocket-assisted takeoff

No runway required. USMC variant has landing gear for recovery from forward airstrips. Bases stay dispersed and harder to hit.