Grid Aero
Grid Aero, of San Leandro, California, is developing Lifter Lite, an uncrewed twin-engine cargo aircraft built for autonomy from the start and aimed first at military logistics.
Founded in 2024 by Arthur Dubois, formerly of Joby Aviation and Xwing, it emerged from stealth in August 2025 and has raised 26 million US dollars, including a 20 million Series A in January 2026. The aircraft is designed to fly long distances without a pilot, from rough strips and where GPS may be jammed. No customers are named.
No verified deployments yet
Grid Aero is profiled in the companies register, but no deployment has been verified against published evidence. Records are added as evidence is reviewed and graded.
Products & Solutions
2 productsLifter Lite
A fully autonomous, uncrewed, long-range cargo aircraft designed from a clean sheet to carry heavy payloads (2,000 to 10,000 pounds) over long distances (thousands of miles, including transoceanic Pacific routes) without a human pilot on board or remotely piloting.
Contested, remote, and infrastructure-poor environments lack affordable, reliable cargo logistics. Traditional military cargo aircraft (such as C-130s) are limited in number, expensive, and vulnerable. Commercial cargo in remote regions (Pacific islands, remote Alaska, disaster areas) faces high cost and operational constraints. Lifter Lite provides a low-cost, scalable, autonomous alternative that operates from unprepared runways and in contested airspace.
- Fully autonomous operation from takeoff to landing - no pilot on board or required for remote control
- AI-enhanced autonomy stack blending classical controls with machine learning
- Distributed mesh network: small ground team can command dozens of aircraft simultaneously
- Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) capability on unprepared runways with approximately 1,000 feet of runway required
4 more features
- Rugged airframe with minimal moving parts for reliability and easy maintenance
- Scalable design - each Lifter Lite added to a fleet expands network range and redundancy
- Dual-use: defense logistics and commercial cargo applications
- Modular design adaptable to mission duration and load capacity
Technical specifications (6)
- Payload: 2,000 to 10,000 pounds
- Range: thousands of miles including Guam-to-Japan distance (minimum 1,500 nautical miles transoceanic)
- STOL requirement: approximately 1,000 feet of runway
- No VTOL capability
- Propulsion: proven powertrain (specific engine not publicly named)
- Autonomy: AI stack with real-time adaptation and fleet learning
- AFWERX Direct to Phase II SBIR contract (US Air Force)
- FAA Part 23 certification being pursued (not yet certified)
The Grid
The Grid is Grid Aero's concept for a scalable network of autonomous Lifter aircraft providing strategic logistics reach. Each aircraft added to the network expands range, redundancy, and adaptability.
- Scalable network, one aircraft or a thousand
- Distributed autonomous logistics network
- Cross-aircraft learning via shared autonomy stack
- Strategic reach and operational flexibility at scale
Register notes
Notes held in the Aerostack register. Aerostack has not independently verified them.
Pentagon Priority: Autonomous aircraft designated as one of 6 Critical Technology Areas in NDAA. R&D Allocation: $9 billion for autonomous aircraft in FY2026 defense budget.
Read the rest
Cost Comparison: One C-130 costs $70-170M; a Lifter fleet delivers more payload at fraction of cost.
Commercial TAM: $59B short/medium-haul cargo market.
Timeline: Military contracts in progress; commercial applications ~5 years out.
Earlier listing summary (5 groups)
Summary text from the earlier Aerostack listing. Figures in it are not independently verified.
- Autonomy stack blending classical controls with modern AI/ML
- Real-time adaptation to terrain, weather, and threats
- Fleet-level learning: aircraft share operational data across the Grid
- Minimal human oversight required for long-distance missions
- Contested environment operations (GPS-denied, communications-degraded)
- Clean-sheet Group 5 UAS design
- Twin-engine diesel propulsion
- "Single digit" moving parts for reliability
- STOL capability (~1,000 ft unprepared runways)
- Modular payload bay for cargo, ISR, or refueling missions
- Thin sheet metal construction with COTS electronics
- Designed for rapid assembly and field repair
- Distributed mesh network for fleet coordination
- One ground team commands dozens of autonomous aircraft
- Each aircraft learns from others in real-time
- Adaptive routing around threats and conditions
- Operates across vast regions with minimal infrastructure
- Classical controls + modern AI/ML hybrid approach
- GPS-denied navigation systems
- Mesh networking for fleet communication
- Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) electronics
- Diesel propulsion for logistics simplicity
- $26M total raised: $6M Seed (2024-2025) + $20M Series A (Jan 2026)
- Series A led by Bison Ventures and Geodesic Capital
- Employee count ~20-40 (estimated from LinkedIn/industry context)
- Commercial applications ~5 years out; military contracts in progress
Profile data from the Aerostack companies register; deployment records from the verified register. Evidence grades: T1 first-party confirmation, T2 credible reporting. See Our approach for how records are graded.