AEVEX And Divergent Autonomous Drone: US defence companies AEVEX and Divergent Technologies have started a new partnership to work on a next-generation autonomous drone. The main aim is to make the journey from a digital design to a working aircraft much quicker.
AEVEX already has experience in building and deploying unmanned systems. It has delivered thousands of unmanned systems around the world and works on autonomous aircraft, mission software and other defence technologies. Divergent brings a very different strength to the project. Its main focus is advanced digital manufacturing.
The two companies will look at new airframe designs that can be changed more easily when military needs change. They also want to reduce the number of separate parts used in the aircraft and make large-scale production easier.
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How Divergent’s DAPS System will Help
A key part of the partnership is Divergent Adaptive Production System (DAPS). The system combines AI-supported engineering software with industrial 3D printing and robotic assembly.
The software can help create aircraft structures that are designed for both performance and easier manufacturing. Once the design is ready, industrial printers can produce structural parts such as nodes using different metal alloys.
Those printed parts can then be joined by a software-controlled robotic system. This means manufacturers don’t need to build special tooling for every new design. It can also make it easier to change the design and move into another production setup when needed. Divergent’s approach is aimed at shortening development work while making production more flexible. The company has already been working on digital manufacturing for aerospace and defence applications.
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AEVEX and Divergent will initially focus on adaptable airframes, faster system integration and digitally managed production methods. The companies say this could help future unmanned platforms move from an idea to an operational system in less time.
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“Working with Divergent allows us to evaluate next-generation manufacturing concepts that could improve responsiveness and bring new flexibility to how future unmanned systems are developed and delivered,” said Manan Patel, chief technology officer at AEVEX.
AEVEX has been expanding its unmanned aircraft production in 2026. The company has received several US government contracts for autonomous aircraft and one-way attack systems, including an $18.5 million US Air Force contract announced in May and a $41 million award announced in August.
“We’re proud to collaborate with AEVEX to deliver mass at the pace of need,” said Lukas Czinger, co-founder and chief executive officer of Divergent Technologies.
“Divergent is a force multiplier for our customers’ programs, and we’re excited to integrate DAPS with AEVEX’s field-proven expertise to set a new standard for delivering capability at speed and scale.”
