The White House just reinforced one of the biggest defense trends of 2026.

President Trump’s new National Resilience Strategy places commercial drones alongside AI, critical infrastructure, domestic manufacturing, and secure supply chains as technologies critical to America’s long-term resilience.¹

That comes just months after the Administration proposed the largest defense budget in American history.

$1.5 trillion for fiscal year 2027. A 66% increase from current levels.²

Defense stocks noticed immediately. Kratos soared 196% in 2025. AeroVironment gained 76%. Northrop Grumman broke out to all-time highs.

But the real story is not the dollar figure.

It is what the Pentagon is buying with it.

Drones. More than 340,000 of them by 2027.³ 

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered every Army squad to be equipped with unmanned systems by the end of 2026.⁴

This is not a procurement suggestion. It is a mandate.

Ukraine proved why. 

Cheap drones costing a few hundred dollars are destroying tanks worth $10 million. In one night, 117 drones hit five Russian airbases and caused an estimated $7 billion in damage. The future of warfare is not fighter jets with decade-long development cycles. It is expendable systems that can be built fast and deployed faster.⁵

The US Army is now rewriting its battle doctrine based on what it learned from Ukraine. That is not a research paper. That is a procurement signal.

Now add the part most investors have not fully processed.

The Chinese drone market just got locked out.

In December 2025, the FCC effectively banned new models from DJI and other Chinese manufacturers from entering the US market.⁶

DJI controlled nearly 80% of the American drone market.⁷

That door is closing. Someone has to fill the gap.

That is exactly the lane ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) has been building for years.

Not a concept. Not a pitch deck. A company already manufacturing drones, generating revenue, and scaling a national service network while competitors debate timelines.

Why This Company Keeps Showing Up on Investor Watchlists

The thesis is straightforward.

ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) sits at the intersection of three massive tailwinds: a historic defense spending surge, a regulatory shift that locked out Chinese competitors, and a commercial drone market projected to reach $54 billion by 2030.⁸

Here is what separates this company from the rest of the sector.

Revenue growth is not a projection. It already happened. Q3 2025 revenue hit $4.35 million versus Q3 2024.⁹ That is 1,225% year-over-year growth. Full-year 2025 revenue reached $12.9 million, up 558% versus $2.0 million for full year 2024, with Q4 2025 revenue alone increasing 670%.¹⁰ Then in Q1 2026, revenue increased 640% year over year, bringing ZenaTech‘s annualized revenue run rate to approximately C$33 million.

The US military has already tested their drones. Paid trials with the Air Force and Navy are complete. Not proposals. Completed field tests.

Drone-as-a-Service is the differentiator no one else has built. Twenty-four acquisitions completed. National rollout in progress. Target of 25 by June 2026. 

This is recurring revenue infrastructure already scaling across multiple states. While competitors sell hardware and hope customers figure out the rest, ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) delivers drone services directly. No pilot training required. No regulatory headaches. Just results.

Quantum computing adds another layer. The company is actively developing Eagle Eye, a quantum-powered intelligence platform designed for US Defense and Homeland Security applications. This positions ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) at the intersection of autonomous drones and next-generation computing.

Green and Blue UAS certification is the gateway to contracts. You cannot sell drones to the Pentagon without being on the list. ZenaTech has applications in progress for its IQ Square, IQ Nano, and ZenaDrone 1000 platforms, with four drones total in the Blue UAS certification pipeline.¹¹ The company is also preparing its IQ Quad land survey drone for submission to the Blue UAS certification process, another important step toward future US government and defense procurement.¹² 

Insider ownership means alignment. More than 60% insider ownership. CEO Dr. Shaun Passley controls nearly 50% of voting stock. When leadership owns the majority, incentives point the same direction as shareholders. ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) was also recently added to the Russell 3000 Index, a milestone that increases institutional visibility and broadens exposure among index funds and professional investors.

Four Business Lines Working Together

Most investors hear “drone company” and picture a startup with a prototype. This company is a revenue-generating commercial drone company through Drone as a Service, with a defense upside.

ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) is something different.

This is a company that designs drones, manufactures drones, sells drones, and differentiates through operating a global drone services network, develops quantum computing applications, and owns 12 enterprise software brands generating recurring revenue. Four business lines. All integrated. All working together toward the same goal.

Drone Technology Solutions. 

The flagship ZenaDrone 1000 is a medium-sized autonomous drone with interchangeable sensors and a payload compartment for temperature-controlled cargo. The IQ Nano handles indoor warehouse inventory. The IQ Square handles outdoor surveys and defense reconnaissance.

Manufacturing happens across three facilities. UAE has been operating since 2022. Arizona handles R&D and US military assembly. Taiwan’s Spider Vision Sensors produces components with supply chains built for US defense compliance.

Drone-as-a-Service. 

ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) is not just selling hardware. It is building an AI autonomy platform and a national network that delivers drone services directly to businesses and government customers.

The model acquires established service companies like land surveyors and inspection firms, integrates drone technology into their workflows, and scales under a unified brand. These are not startups. They are businesses with existing revenue, customers, and local relationships that become cash-flowing from day one.

Over twenty acquisitions are complete across the US, UK, Australia and Canada. Target is 25 by June 2026. They have announced plans to expand their acquisition partnerships across sectors such as defense and manufacturing supply chain, and geographies to support their business.  The services span land surveys, powerline inspections, solar farm maintenance, telecom tower assessments, power washing and precision agriculture.

Enterprise SaaS. 

Twelve  software brands serving business and government customers generated $2.8 million in 2025, a 45% increase year over year. This recurring revenue funds drone development without constant dilution. ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) built a successful software business first, then expanded into drones.

Quantum Computing. 

The Eagle Eye initiative integrates AI drones with quantum computing for predictive mission analysis, enhanced situational awareness, optimized military logistics, and secure quantum-encrypted communications. 

This is not theoretical research. It is an active R&D project with a dedicated Zena AI development center in the US. Sky Traffic applies quantum analytics to urban traffic optimization.¹⁴ Clear Skies applies it to weather forecasting and emergency preparedness.¹⁵

The Valuation Gap Most Investors Have Not Noticed

Most investors chasing the drone theme are buying the same names everyone else owns.

Lockheed Martin at $120.6 billion. Northrop Grumman at $76 billion. L3Harris at $54.16 billion.

ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) sits at roughly $118 million.

That is a 500x gap between where ZenaTech trades and where the largest defense contractors sit.

The question is not whether ZenaTech will become Lockheed Martin. The question is what happens if it captures even a small fraction of the opportunity in front of it.

But forget the legacy primes. Look at the drone-focused comparables.

AeroVironment trades at approximately $7.32 billion. Kratos Defense trades at approximately $9.03 billion. Red Cat Holdings trades at approximately $1.34 billion.

That means AeroVironment is valued at over 62x ZenaTech. Kratos is valued at approximately 76x ZenaTech.

Red Cat focuses almost entirely on military drones. AeroVironment focuses on military. Kratos focuses on defense tech.

ZenaTech is the only company building across defense, commercial, and Drone-as-a-Service simultaneously. It is the only one with an active DaaS network generating commercial revenue today.

The DaaS market alone is projected to reach approximately $179.3 billion by 2030.¹⁶ The military drone market is projected to reach $47 billion by 2032. ZenaTech is positioned to capture share in both.

A 10x move would still leave ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) valued at a fraction of AeroVironment.

The Stock Structure Favors Early Positioning

Experienced investors look at stock structure before anything else.

ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) checks every box.

Insider control. CEO Dr. Shaun Passley controls nearly 50% of voting stock. Top three shareholders control over 54% collectively. Insiders have approximately $33 million invested.¹⁷

Tight float. Approximately 91 million shares outstanding. Short interest sits at roughly 7.71% with just 1.16 days to cover. This is not a heavily shorted name where bears are piling in. It is a tightly held stock where meaningful news can move the price without requiring massive institutional volume.

Analyst coverage is building. Maxim Group analyst Matthew Galinko, a five-star rated analyst, has a BUY rating with a $5 price target.¹⁸ That represents an upside of over 237% from current levels.¹⁹

Litchfield Hills analyst Barry Sine just initiated coverage at a price target of $4, indicating a potential update over 169%.²⁰ 

The Leadership Team Behind the Execution

ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA) is not led by first-time founders. These are operators with track records.

The Catalysts Are Stacking

The milestones are already on the board.

Revenue grew 1,225% year-over-year. Q1 2026 alone hit $8.3 million, an annualized run rate of $33 million. Management calls it a baseline, not a ceiling. Twenty-four acquisitions complete with five more targeted by June. Paid Air Force and Navy trials done. Green UAS certification in progress. Arizona manufacturing facility commissioning for US military production. Taiwan facility expansion complete.

The macro tailwind is here. The DJI ban just closed the door on 80% of the US market. The Pentagon wants 340,000 drones. Policy mandates American-made solutions.

The company trades at roughly $118 million while peers focused on a single capability trade at $1B+, $7B+, and $9B+.

That gap does not usually last once the market connects the dots.

Right now, ZenaTech is still in the early innings. The catalysts are stacking. The execution is visible. But the broader market has not caught up yet. That is usually when the best entry points exist. Before the story simplifies. Before the crowd decides it is safe. Before the next headline.

Stories like this do not stay quiet for long.

To stay ahead of the next corporate presentation, press releases, and defense-related updates for ZenaTech Inc. (NASDAQ:ZENA), download the latest corporate deck now.

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