Türkiye’s Baykar unveils next-generation homegrown AI-powered drones

Turkish defense firm Baykar unveiled its next-generation autonomous homegrown combat drones during a swarm demonstration ahead of their public debut at the SAHA 2026 defense expo to be held in Istanbul next month.

The K2 Kamikaze UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) and the Sivrisinek loitering munition have been shown to operate in highly coordinated and artificial intelligence (AI)-powered swarms during a recent field test at the firm’s Kesan Test Center.

The event kicked off with five K2 Kamikaze UAVs taking off and flying in complex formations, soon to be joined by a swarm of ten Sivrisinek loitering munitions.

Baykar’s larger Bayraktar TB2, TB3, and Akinci combat drones escorted and recorded the operation from above at the same time.

The drones successfully performed positioning, navigation, and targeting completely independent of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), using advanced AI-powered visual navigation software.

The AI software allows the swarm to carry out autonomous target detection and strikes even when GPS signals are jammed or unavailable.

The Sivrisinek loitering munition marks a leap in operational depth with a strike range of over 1,000 kilometers (621.3 miles).

The munition can maintain continuous communication within the swarm thanks to AI, which allows the swarm to instantly share target data with one another in order to coordinate simultaneous strikes.

The Sivrisinek swarm successfully carried out coordinated dives on designated coordinates during the test, while the K2 Kamikaze UAVs’ high-speed dive maneuvers followed.

Baykar’s introduction of these next-generation autonomous platforms further solidified its place in the global defense market.

The defense giant funded its research entirely through its own resources and retained its status as the world’s largest UAV exporter in 2025, setting a new company record with $2.2 billion in export volume, according to the firm’s report on Friday.

Baykar generated 90% of its revenue from global sales, having secured export deals with some 38 countries for its combat drone fleet.