Auterion signs MoU with Taiwan for drone swarming software

A controller of Skynode S by Auterion LLC, on display during the USV demonstration media tour on June 17, 2025 in Yilan, Taiwan. (Photo by Annabelle Chih/Getty Images)

MELBOURNE — Taiwan and defense technology company Auterion have entered into a partnership to integrate swarming technology into a variety of unmanned platforms being developed in Taiwan.

The US-based company announced today that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Taiwan’s National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST) that would seek to develop and deploy hundreds of thousands of autonomous drones across the air, maritime, and land domains in the coming years.

NCSIST is Taiwan’s primary institution for research and development into defense-related technologies.

The agreement will see AuterionOS, the company’s operating system for uncrewed systems, and Nemesis, Auterion’s AI-powered drone swarming platform, integrated into a new generation of unmanned systems being developed by NCSIST and Taiwan’s defense companies.

The software, which Auterion says is similar to that used in combat by Ukrainian drones, has already been used on drones fitted with real munitions on a Taiwanese test range, with NCSIST releasing a video of two separate loitering munitions exploding upon hitting a target.

It added that the collaboration is a strategic component of Taiwan’s national drone initiative and a major step forward in enhancing its deterrence and resilience through distributed and intelligent unmanned systems.

This signing ceremony for the MoU took place today during a unmanned surface vessel exercise hosted by NCSIST, which saw its drones take part alongside those from industry partners.

“NCSIST is partnering with Auterion because of its deep operational experience and proven capability powering uncrewed systems across air, land, and sea,” said NCSIST president Admiral Lee Shi-Chiang, who added that Auterion’s battle-tested technology provides the autonomy, security, and flexibility Taiwan needs to rapidly scale a sovereign drone ecosystem.

Taiwan is seeking a range of asymmetric defense solutions alongside more conventional arms in the face of the threat from an increasingly powerful Chinese military. China sees the self-governing island as part of its territory and has vowed to reincorporate Taiwan and has not ruled out the use of force to do so.