South Korea’s Nearthlab has launched a next-gen attack drone that carries mortar shells and coordinates strikes in AI-driven swarms.
Known as XAiDEN, the platform is designed to neutralize drones, vehicles, and other moving targets using onboard intelligence and autonomous coordination. It follows last year’s KAiDEN interceptor drone, but shifts from air defense to multi-target offensive roles.
It can operate in swarms of 10, requiring only one communication-enabled leader drone to allow the rest to function autonomously in GPS- or comms-denied environments.
The drones launch simultaneously, forming a swarm mid-air before splitting off to conduct synchronized reconnaissance, tracking, and precision strikes.
If one drone fails, another immediately takes over, contributing to what Nearthlab claims is a near-100 percent mission success rate.
To reduce logistical burden, XAiDEN uses off-the-shelf 60mm mortar rounds. A cartridge-style payload system is also being developed to support additional shell types.
Flying Toward Growth
With XAiDEN added to its portfolio, Nearthlab expects its total revenue to hit 10 billion won ($7.7 million) this year, nearly doubling last year’s 5.5 billion won ($4.2 million).
The company is now pivoting sharply toward autonomous weapons development, with second-generation versions of both KAiDEN and XAiDEN underway.
“AI drones are closely related to national defense, so it is more important than any other field to secure true ‘sovereign’ technology,” Nearthlab CEO Choi Jae-hyuk said. “As a company that produces and develops national strategic materials, we will fulfill our responsibilities.”
