Best of LinkedIn: Defense Tech CW 30/ 31

Hypersonic momentum builds: Europe’s INVICTUS program validates hydrogen-fueled propulsion for reusable vehicles at Mach 5; Australia’s Barracuda-100M reaches a key milestone in the High-Speed Modular Missile program

Digital targeting and AI mature: BlackTree’s ASGARD DDS enters British Army service, doubling precision-fire throughput; operational trials confirm AI-driven decision loops can compress targeting cycles from hours to minutes

Secure electronics and networks: Northrop Grumman scales domestic microelectronics production; the NetVIPR platform demonstrates dynamic, resilient networking for contested environments

Unmanned versatility rises: GEREON multirole drones and the European Defense Innovation Hub’s first live trials highlight demand for low-cost, adaptable systems; France’s RapidFire counters swarming threats with a fast, cost-efficient gun-based solution

Maritime and space gaps addressed: Mid-Range Capability tests in Australia underscore allied strike depth, while Airbus, the UK, and Germany expand cooperation on militarized space assets

Naval autonomy accelerates through rapid-build agreements for mass-produced unmanned warships and distributed fleets of smart craft

Cross-border technology transfer deepens: Airbus teams with Turkish Aerospace on advanced air-frame development; Hellas Sat partners with ESA to bolster secure sat-com services

Security ecosystem expands: Dedrone and the German Federal Police Union cooperate on counter-UAV coverage; defence primes, startups, and agencies convene to resolve software and capacity bottlenecks in autonomy and space

Software-centric procurement surges: Palantir secures a multibillion-dollar U.S. Army enterprise software deal; Anduril wins a nine-figure contract to overhaul Army command-and-control architecture

AI moves to the front line as the DoD selects Anthropic, Google, OpenAI, and xAI to operationalize large-language-model capabilities across national-security missions

Missile-defence demand stays strong: Lockheed Martin lands additional THAAD interceptor orders alongside a robust international backlog

Capital gravitates toward power and autonomy: Chariot Defense attracts new investment to modernize expeditionary energy delivery, while European budgets pivot from legacy platforms toward indigenous innovation and strategic autonomy

Government–industry alignment tightens: Visits such as senior officials to HENSOLDT’s Ulm facility underscore the push to fuse sensor innovation with national-security strategy and export competitiveness

NATO air-power integration advances through renewed Eurofighter interest

Automotive entrants reassess defense diversification as regulatory and integration hurdles surface

EU-NATO collaboration on critical-infrastructure protection gains urgency amid hybrid-threat scenarios

Ukraine’s shift to cost-effective drone warfare illustrates asymmetry’s growing leverage against high-end systems