Ondas Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:ONDS) stock jumped 4.7% in premarket trading Thursday after announcing a $35 million strategic investment in Performance Drone Works (PDW), a defense technology company specializing in combat robotics.

The investment aims to accelerate PDW’s growth as a leader in combat robotics manufacturing while strengthening Ondas’ position in AI-enabled autonomous defense platforms. PDW, described as one of the fastest-growing defense technology companies in the United States, designs and manufactures advanced robotics for national security missions.

PDW operates Drone Factory 01, a 90,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Huntsville, Alabama, with capacity to produce up to 100,000 NDAA-compliant drone systems annually, valued at approximately $1 billion.

The funds will be used to scale production, increase engineering headcount, and secure domestically sourced NDAA-compliant components. PDW recently secured a $20.9 million contract from the U.S. Army to supply its C100 unmanned aerial systems and Multi-Mission Payloads for the Army’s ’Transformation in Contact’ initiative.

“We believe PDW has become one of the most important and trusted aerial robotics companies in the United States, driven by the exceptional leadership of Matt Higgins, General (Ret.) Tony Thomas, Ryan Gury, and their team,” said Eric Brock, Ondas CEO & Chairman.

General (Ret.) Tony Thomas III, PDW’s Chairman and former Commander of USSOCOM, emphasized the transformative nature of the technology: “AI enabled combat robotics are emerging as the new and incredibly disruptive means of war fighting/winning and deterrence.”