Taiwan deepens defence ties with US companies

Northrop Grumman, AeroVironment, and Shield AI recently announced major partnerships with Taiwan, focusing on missile defence and autonomous systems. The partnerships reflect the deepening defence ties between Taiwan and Western companies.

In a concerted effort to bolster its defensive capabilities against escalating threats, Taiwan has significantly expanded its partnerships with key Western defence technology companies, integrating cutting-edge US innovation into its domestic military industrial base.

Announcements made around the Taipei Aerospace and Defence Technology Exhibition (TADTE) this month reveal a clear strategic goal: to enhance Taiwan’s self-reliant defence through co-development and technology transfer, particularly in the areas of missile defence, radar, and autonomous strike systems.

US Expertise for Air and Missile Defence

The US defence giant Northrop Grumman has emerged as a central partner, signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST), Taiwan’s primary defence research and development arm.

The collaboration is specifically focused on exploring the modernisation of Taiwan’s air and missile defence. Northrop Grumman plans to leverage its experience with programmes like the US Army’s Integrated Battle Command System to enhance Taiwan’s preparedness. “As the threat environment evolves, this new radar will ensure faster decision making and superior situational awareness in contested environments,” said Jeremy Knupp, vice president of global command and control systems at Northrop Grumman.

Separately, Northrop Grumman has also teamed up with local Taiwanese industry partners – Ramatek, Champion Auto, and Vivian and Vincent International Trading Company Ltd. – to bring the AN/TPS-78 Advanced Capabilities (ADCAP) radar to the island. Described as a proven, long-range, and highly mobile system, the radar is expected to significantly improve Taiwan’s air surveillance capabilities.

Taiwan’s existing air defence capabilities include an array of Patriot ground-based batteries, its domestically manufactured Tien Kung (Sky Bow) systems. Taiwan is also positioned to acquire three NASAMS batteries under a contract signed in February this year, according to Focus Taiwan. The ground-based layer is supported from the air by a fleet of F-16s in various build standards, Mirage 2000-5, and the domestically produced F-CK-1 Ching-kuo. The total fleet is thought to consist of around 300 interceptor aircraft and healthy stockpiles of air-to-air missiles. At sea, Project Zhenhai is expected to introduce air defence frigates into Taiwan’s fleet and the Kang Ding-class frigates are understood to be undergoing an upgrade that introduces some air defence capability. 

Altogether, this indicates that the AN/TPS-78 radar and experience gained under the IBCS project could make valuable contributions to Taiwan’s air defence by helping to integrate all of the different platforms and sensors into a central command and control system. This would, in theory, help to provide a coordinated and smart response to an air threat by China, rather than one based on which assets are in place to see targets. 

This came alongside several domestic developments including a $529 million push to procure C-UAS solutions and the unveiling of a domestically developed high energy laser for drone defence. Developed by ADIC, the 8 kW laser has a range of 1-2 km. 

The Autonomy Arms Race

Perhaps the most visible sign of deepening cooperation is in the field of uncrewed autonomous systems (UAS), a sector that has proven its ability to offset differences in mass in the Ukraine war and elsewhere.

Shield AI, an American deep-tech company specialising in autonomy software, has marked its long-term commitment to Taipei by opening a new office in the city’s landmark Taipei 101 tower. “One of the lessons we learned from our work in Ukraine is that if you want to be a real partner, you need to be there,” said Brandon Tseng, Shield AI’s President, Co-Founder, and a former Navy SEAL. “By establishing a permanent presence in Taipei, we can be a better partner to Taiwan.” Shield AI’s V-Drone is understood to be one of the few that can reliably operate at all times in Ukraine. This may be driving interest in work between Taiwan and Shield AI as well as the widespread uptake of the drone amongst NATO members.

The office opening follows a formal Teaming Agreement between Shield AI and the Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC), Taiwan’s largest aerospace manufacturer. This agreement sets the stage for collaboration on sustainment, training, and the integration of autonomous technology, such as Shield AI’s V-BAT aircraft. The partnership aims to “supercharge Taiwan’s local drone and aerospace industry” and deliver the systems required to strengthen deterrence.

In a parallel move, AeroVironment (AV), a global leader in defence technology and loitering munitions, has also signed an MOU with NCSIST. This partnership is specifically designed to strengthen the lifecycle and sustainability of Taiwan’s unmanned and precision strike systems, initially focusing on AV’s JUMP 20 vertical take-off and landing platforms. The agreement is linked to a prior US State Department approval for a substantial foreign military sale of AV’s Switchblade 300 loitering munition systems to Taiwan.

By providing technical expertise and proven sustainment processes, AV aims to help NCSIST build infrastructure that enhances readiness and resilience on the island. Future work is set to include the co-development of uncrewed systems and advanced autonomy software, reflecting Taiwan’s clear intent to boost domestic production and lifecycle management of mission-critical systems.

“This partnership underscores AV’s long-term commitment to supporting the defence needs of Taiwan and our allies in the Indo-Pacific region,” said Justin McFarlin, Vice President of International Business Development for AV. The wave of announcements clearly demonstrates that Taiwan’s strategy now firmly rests on integrating world-class Western defence technology with its own burgeoning domestic industrial base.

This builds upon a series of announcements from Anduril in August 2025 including the opening of a company office in Taipei and MoU with NCSIST. “Anduril is here to stay in Taiwan, and we’re building a long-term physical presence to secure that,” company CEO, Palmer Luckey said. Anduril also built and delivered 291 of its Altius-600M loitering munitions at its own financial risk and delivered them to Taiwan. Building upon this, NCSIST is reportedly planning to manufacture the Anduril Copperhead C-500M torpedo family.

Taiwan’s own domestic companies have also developed loitering munitions and strike USVs, including Gus Technology, which has secured an export contract for its loitering munitions with an Asian customer, according to trade media reporting. 

Calibre comment

It is clear that Taiwan is developing as much as it can domestically and seeking out partnerships to accelerate certain elements of its defence. The focus on strike munitions is understandable, it builds a reliable strike component into the country’s defensive posture, which would likely involve engagements against massed targets including landing craft, vehicles, and helicopters in the event of a Chinese invasion. 

By Sam Cranny-Evans, published on September 25, 2025. The lead image shows an F-16 in service with Taiwan returning from patrol in 2011. Credit for the lead image is Al Jazeera English, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons