A cutting-edge defense tech startup, Anduril, has developed an innovative new product to combat the proliferation of low-cost, high-powered aerial threats.
Introducing Roadrunner, a modular, twin-jet powered autonomous vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) air vehicle designed for cost-efficiency. Alongside Roadrunner, Anduril has also created an alternative known as Roadrunner-Munition, or Roadrunner-M, a “high-explosive interceptor” capable of carrying a warhead and defensively eliminating aerial threats.
Roadrunner is not only unique in appearance, but also in its capabilities: it can take off, track, and neutralize targets. If there is no need to intercept the target, the vehicle can autonomously navigate back to base for refueling and re-use. Chris Brose, Anduril’s chief strategy officer, described it as “a fighter jet weapon that lands like a Falcon 9.”
The development of Roadrunner was prompted by the emergence of fast-moving, autonomous aerial weapons that can be mass-produced at a very low cost, posing a new type of threat. Unlike other current solutions and the legacy rocket systems that came before, Roadrunner-M is also reusable.
“To my mind, this is the first recoverable weapon that has ever been fielded,” said Brose. “That is a pretty cool thing. The ability to deploy […] recover it, and reuse it if you don’t actually use it in an operation to eliminate another drone, completely changes how operators can engage with this capability. Today, they have a finite number of interceptors and if they decide to launch one, they are not getting it back.”
Anduril touts several significant improvements over legacy systems: faster launch and takeoff time, three times greater warhead payload capacity, 10 times effective range, and three times greater maneuverability in G-forces. Similar to Anduril’s other systems, Roadrunner-M can be operated by Lattice, Andruil’s AI-powered command and control software, or integrated into existing architectures.
Another major advantage is for the operator: when faced with a fast-moving threat, Roadrunner can deploy immediately, assess it, and then receive a signal whether to engage. Due to its reusability and recoverability, operators can act without the fear of losing a costly asset.
Brose revealed that the company has been working closely with an unnamed U.S. government partner since the inception of the Roadrunner project around two years ago.
“[National defense] often rightly gets the stereotype for being very stodgy, very slow, very unimaginative, very unexciting,” Brose remarked. “I think as a company Anduril is the opposite of that, and Roadrunner is the embodiment of the kind of excitement that we believe exists in national defense, and we’re very excited to try to reinvigorate.”