US-based PDW to test Odd Systems’ Kurbas cameras on its drones

American defence company Performance Drone Works (PDW) has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Ukrainian companies The Fourth Law and Odd Systems, the partners said in a joint press release. The parties signed the memorandum on October 12 at the AUSA conference in Washington.

Under the agreement, PDW will assess the prospects of integrating Kurbas thermal cameras from Odd Systems into PDW’s drones. The parties will also explore localised camera production in the US.

PDW is also interested in joining Project Foundation, an initiative launched by Odd Systems and The Fourth Law. Among other things, the project envisions producing thermal sensors in the United States.

Under the memorandum, PDW will become a manufacturing and industrialisation partner for The Fourth Law and Odd Systems in the United States.

“With Odd Systems, we’re starting with a critical component: cameras that help operators see and understand their mission,” says PDW CEO James Slider. “We aim to combine proven technology with the American engineering and manufacturing capacity needed to deploy it at scale.”

Odd Systems says Kurbas is currently the most widely used Ukrainian-made thermal camera on the front line. It supplies more than 200 drone manufacturers and is used on many types of unmanned systems, from Shahed interceptors to strike drones.

PDW develops multi-purpose UAVs, software, communications equipment, payloads, training systems and more. The company owns the Drone Factory 01 engineering and production complex in Huntsville, Alabama, spanning more than 8,300 square meters.