CHAOS Industries Introduces VESPID Family of Very Low-Cost Interceptors to Reenable Maneuver

New Mk 0 and Mk 1 combine affordable air defense with scalable production to counter high-volume drone threats

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CHAOS Industries, a defense-tech company that designs and manufactures advanced radar, sensor, effector, and network systems on U.S. soil, today introduced VESPID, a family of very low-cost interceptors designed to provide point and area defense against Group 1–3 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and one-way attack (OWA) threats.

VESPID Mk 0 is man-portable and designed for austere environments. VESPID Mk 1 is a faster, more maneuverable variant designed for high-density installations with a multitube launcher.

Low-cost air threats are proliferating at a scale that challenges the affordability and capacity of traditional air defenses. Ground, air, and maritime forces need interceptors that can be produced, deployed, and replenished in sufficient quantities to sustain protection and preserve freedom of maneuver. Meeting that need requires a family of interceptors designed for operational effectiveness, ease of employment, and high-volume manufacturing at an affordable cost.

“The United States and its allies require more than expensive, exquisite systems that take years to develop and are produced in limited quantities. We need effective interceptors that can be built quickly, fielded broadly, and employed at a cost that makes sense against threats arriving at scale,” said Dr. Bo Marr, co-founder and CTO at CHAOS Industries. “VESPID is designed to give the warfighter that capacity without sacrificing the performance the mission demands. With CHAOS radars already providing the sensing layer, VESPID closes the threat kill chain.”

The VESPID family of interceptors is interoperable with CHAOS’ multistatic radar systems, which provide affordable, survivable, long-range surveillance solutions to cue VESPID and other interceptors.

The company expects to achieve an initial production capacity of 12,000 interceptors per year, with a manufacturing architecture capable of expanding to 50,000 as customer demand grows.

VESPID addresses those priorities through architecture centered on:

• Very low unit cost and cost-effective threat engagement
• Commercial off-the-shelf components and simplified assembly designed for high-volume production
• Effective performance against Group 1-3 threats
• Integration with existing sensors, command-and-control systems, and launch platforms
• Integrated detection-to-intercept capability with CHAOS’ VANQUISH PRIME radar systems, designed to minimize operator workload
• Ability to operate in congested electromagnetic environments
• Rapid software and hardware updates as threats evolve
• A compact operational and logistics footprint, designed to minimize transportation, storage, and exportability issues

“Affordability and the ability to rapidly replace capability are not secondary considerations. They are operational advantages,” said Marr. “VESPID can be produced quickly and fielded in meaningful quantities, giving users greater endurance, more options, and the freedom to act. That is what we are building with VESPID." Through the CHAOS Coherent Distributed Network™, VESPID extends CHAOS’ portfolio from detecting and tracking threats to defeating them, multiplying the impact of each connected capability.

VESPID Mk 1 will make its first public display at the Association of the U.S. Army Annual Meeting and Exposition, October 12–14. To see VESPID Mk 1 aboard the Forterra MESA vehicle, visit booth 461 in Hall ABC at the Washington Convention Center. To learn more, visit www.chaosinc.com.

About CHAOS Industries

CHAOS Industries is a defense systems company built to keep American and allied airspace secure. CHAOS transforms mission engineering into deployed capability, developing integrated radar, sensor, effector, and network systems for the realities of modern conflict. The company manufactures its systems in the United States, using the power of America's industrial base to rapidly field, scale, and sustain capability.

CHAOS Industries was founded in 2022 and has raised a total of $1 billion in funding from leading investors, including 8VC, Accel, and Valor Equity Partners. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles, with offices in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, San Diego, and London.