Quantum Systems Vector
Germany's combat-proven eVTOL fixed-wing reconnaissance drone — built for jammed environments, upgraded with AI target detection and acoustic artillery location, and the backbone of Ukraine's tactical ISR fleet.
A German electric-VTOL fixed-wing ISR drone that has become the standard tactical reconnaissance asset for Ukrainian forces, combining long endurance with edge-AI target detection and acoustic artillery location in contested electromagnetic environments.
Overview
The Quantum Systems Vector is a battery-powered, tail-sitter electric VTOL (eVTOL) fixed-wing small unmanned aircraft system (sUAS) optimised for medium-range intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR). It entered combat in Ukraine in 2022 and has since been operated at unprecedented scale, logging more than 20,000 operational flight hours there, according to the manufacturer. The airframe converts to the Scorpion multicopter using the same avionics, giving a single system both long-endurance fixed-wing flight and hover-and-stare capability. From 2025 a new iteration, Vector AI, embeds dual Nvidia Jetson Orin modules for on-board object detection, tracking and acoustic artillery cueing, while anti-jam GNSS antennas and vision-based navigation preserve operation in GPS-denied environments source.
Development
Quantum-Systems GmbH was founded in January 2015 in Gilching, Germany, by former Bundeswehr helicopter pilot Florian Seibel and initially built civilian mapping drones. The military Vector was introduced in September 2020 together with Auterion, pivoting the company decisively toward defence after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 Wikipedia. Germany funded the first three batches – 33 (August 2022), 105 (January 2023) and 300 (May 2023) – and by April 2025 had delivered 619 Vector systems to Ukraine Defense News. That early, large-scale combat experience fed a rapid upgrade cycle: the Vector AI, unveiled in late March 2025, added edge-AI processors, a new powertrain that extended endurance to around four hours (manufacturer claim) and an interface for the Polish-developed WASP acoustic sensor Hartpunkt. In the same period the company raised a combined €340 million in Series-C funding, tripling its valuation to above €3 billion and becoming Europe’s first dual-use unicorn Balderton Capital.
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