Romanian army signs deal with American defense contractor ACS to produce anti-drone turrets

The American defense technology company Allen Control Systems (or ACS) has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Romanian Armed Forces for the joint production of autonomous anti-drone turrets in Romania.

ACS recently signed two contracts for the delivery of its autonomous Bullfrog turret to the armies of South Korea and the United Arab Emirates. To support operations in the new markets, the company will open regional offices in Asia and Europe.

Bullfrog is a lightweight, low-power autonomous combat station designed to detect, identify, and neutralize enemy UAVs, according to the description on the company’s website. The turret is capable of engaging UAVs from classes 1–3, offering both autonomous and semi-autonomous defense modes.

According to the company, Bullfrog is the only autonomous turret on the market and is available exclusively to the US and its allies.

“As allied nations seek cost-effective and scalable technologies to counter the rapid proliferation of weaponized drones, Bullfrog provides their forces with a new layer of protection against this growing threat on the move and at the edge,” said Mike Wior, co-founder and CEO, ACS, cited by BusinessWire.

“Our new agreements reflect a shared urgency around countering this threat with systems that are tested, reliable, and ready for combat. Bullfrog is the only near-term viable solution for close-in kinetic defeat at scale,” he added.

In November 2024, ACS raised USD 12 million in seed funding from a group of investors led by Craft Ventures. The American venture capital firm also led the Series A funding round held in March this year, through which ACS secured USD 30 million.

ACS, headquartered in Austin, Texas, was founded by American entrepreneur Mike Wior and two former US Navy nuclear engineers, Steve Simoni and Luke Allen. The three currently head the company, which signed contracts with the US Army Applications Laboratory and the US Special Operations Command to integrate Bullfrog into critical combat platforms.

(Photo source: ACS defense blog)