Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trumphave taken stakes in a Florida drone startup pitching itself to the Pentagon; a bet that places the president's sons in direct financial alignment with a defence market their father's administration has spent the past nine months constructing through executive orders, a sweeping ban on Chinese drone imports, and an activemilitary campaignagainst Iran.
On 9 March 2026,Aureus Greenway Holdings Inc.(Nasdaq: AGH), a West Palm Beach golf-course operator in which both brothers hold stakes through their investment vehicle American Ventures, announced a definitive merger agreement with Autonomous Power Corporation, trading as Powerus.
Upon completion, the combined company will operate under the name Powerus Corporation and seek a Nasdaq listing under the ticker PUSA. The deal drew in a £7.1M ($9M) private placement from investors including drone components makerUnusual Machines(NYSE: UMAC), where Trump Jr. already sits as a shareholder and advisory board member, and a separate £39.5M ($50M) commitment from Seoul-based Korea Climate and Governance Improvement Fund (KCGI), bringing the total capital raise to approximately £46.6M ($59M).
Powerus wasfounded less than two years agoby former US Army Special Operations veterans and has already acquired three subsidiaries in six months:Kaizen Aerospace, which builds heavy-lift unmanned aerial systems capable of payloads exceeding 500 pounds; Tandem Defense, focused on tactical military platforms; and Agile Autonomy, which specialises in maritime surveillance systems.
All three operate from US-based manufacturing facilities. According to the company'spress release, Powerus is targeting production capacity of more than 10,000 drones per month. Interim AGH chief executive Matthew Saker stated in the same release that 'the need for and uses of autonomous technologies are front page news given developments in the Middle East and elsewhere,' describing the deal as 'made even more relevant by current geopolitical uncertainties.' The merger is expected to close in summer 2026, pending shareholder approval, an effective Form S-4 registration, and regulatory clearance.
Exclusive: Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. are backing Powerus, a drone company vying to meet Pentagon demand and fill a hole left by the administration’s ban on new Chinese drones in the U.S.https://t.co/O6kmzXeGQT
The commercial logic behind the deal is inseparable from a single regulatory act. On22 December 2025, theFederal Communications Commission added all foreign-manufactured drones and critical components to its national security Covered List, blocking new models from Chinese manufacturers, includingDJI and Autel Robotics, which together had commanded between 70 and 90 per cent of the US consumer drone market, from receiving FCC equipment authorisation.
Without that authorisation, new drone models cannot legally be imported, marketed, or sold in the United States.FCC chairman Brendan Carrsaid the action was designed to 'unleash American drone dominance.' DJI called the ruling 'disappointing' and said in a statement to CNN that 'no information has been released regarding what information was used by the Executive Branch in reaching its determination.' China's foreign ministry called the designation 'discriminatory.'
The regulatory environment that makes the Powerus investment commercially attractive was not assembled at arm's length from the Trump family. On 6 June 2025, President Trump signedExecutive Order 14307, 'Unleashing American Drone Dominance,' directing all federal agencies to prioritise US-manufactured drone systems.
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth followed on 10 July 2025 with aPentagon memorandumtitled 'Unleashing U.S. Military Drone Dominance,' rescinding previous procurement restrictions and classifying small drones as 'consumable' supplies. 'Drones are the biggest battlefield innovation in a generation,' Hegseth wrote.
Source: International Business Times UK
