Anduril and EDGE Launch Omen Hybrid-Electric VTOL Drone in UAE-US Joint Venture.

Anduril Industries and the UAE’s EDGE Group have agreed to create the EDGE Anduril Production Alliance, a joint venture in Abu Dhabi built around the Omen autonomous air vehicle and an initial Emirati order of fifty systems. By pairing Anduril’s Lattice autonomy software with a regional production base, the deal positions the Emirates to field massed drone swarms, deepen its defense industrial base and export autonomy-enabled systems across the wider Middle East.

Anduril Industries has moved to lock in its most ambitious Middle East partnership to date, announcing on 13 November 2025 the creation of a joint venture with Abu Dhabi-based EDGE Group structured around the Omen autonomous drone. Under the planned EDGE Anduril Production Alliance, pending approvals in Washington and Abu Dhabi, the UAE will acquire an initial batch of fifty Omen systems while hosting a new production, support, and export hub for the platform, tying Emirati airpower to the same Lattice autonomy backbone that underpins Anduril’s U.S. and allied drone portfolio.
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Omen is presented as an autonomous air vehicle (AAV) with vertical take-off transitioning to forward flight, classified in the Group 3 category (Picture source: Anduril/Edge)

Omen is presented as an autonomous air vehicle (AAV) with vertical take-off transitioning to forward flight, classified in the Group 3 category. The airframe is designed to be compact, foldable and transportable by a two-person team without heavy infrastructure, which allows deployment from rough terrain or advanced sites. The same autonomous air vehicle (AAV) combines the endurance and payload capacity of larger systems with the smaller footprint of a tactical platform. The choice of an open architecture makes it possible to integrate, as required, electro-optical payloads, infrared sensors or communications relay modules, following a mission-by-mission configuration logic.

The technological core of the aircraft relies on the Lattice for Mission Autonomy platform developed by Anduril, which provides the command-and-control layer to coordinate several drones in a swarm. The aircraft share their sensor data, adjust their trajectories in real time, prioritise objectives and adapt to operational constraints. This approach can feed a Recognised Maritime Picture (RMP) or a Common Operational Picture (COP) at local level, linking deployed units directly to the C2 chain. The integration of emission control modes, similar to an Emission Control (EMCON) posture, is intended to limit the electromagnetic footprint when survivability takes priority over bandwidth, with fine modulation of radio activity.

The dual-use profile of the system is highlighted explicitly. Beyond defence missions, Omen is designed to act as an “airborne telecommunications node” capable of restoring mobile or data links after a natural disaster when ground infrastructure is degraded. The same platform can provide light resupply links to isolated areas or support relief operations by supplying observation capabilities to civil authorities. This ability to shift rapidly from a military to a civilian mode improves the political acceptability of the programme and broadens the range of potential customers in the region.

The investment made by the Emirates with the purchase of the first fifty systems also serves as an instrument for structuring the national defence industrial and technological base. The ramp-up of the EDGE Anduril Production Alliance is expected to draw on local subcontracting chains and encourage the establishment of suppliers in the fields of composites, embedded electronics and critical software. Anduril is also announcing a 50,000 square foot research, development and virtual simulation centre in Abu Dhabi, intended to serve as a hub for engineering and prototyping. This industrial foundation brings design, industrialisation and systems integration closer together, while preparing in the longer term for export campaigns from the Emirates to other allied forces.

In an environment marked by the rapid expansion of autonomous drones across all levels of defence planning, the EDGE Anduril pairing positions itself as a reference point between disruptive US industry and an Emirati defence industrial and technological base that is moving up in capability. The agreement centred on Omen reflects the intention of the two groups to place themselves within future standards for the employment of drone swarms, from maritime surveillance to the protection of critical infrastructure. The alliance suggests a division of roles in which Anduril contributes its control of software architectures and mission autonomy, while EDGE brings industrial depth, regional anchoring and the ability to bring in other partners from the Gulf.