Launched in July 2026 by the Department of National Defence (DND) and the Defence Investment Agency (DIA), the Defence Drone Initiative (DDI) accelerates the development, testing, and adoption of sovereign Canadian technologies. The DDI Marketplace establishes a

pre-qualified pool of suppliers to compete for Canadian Armed Forces and public safety contracts.

Under Stream 5, Next1 will advance its flagship 15kg-class ultra long range tactical Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) UAS currently under development. Built for complex operational environments, the platform features vertical takeoff and landing capabilities paired with an electric propulsion architecture designed to achieve 5+ hours of flight endurance and a 350+ km operational range.

“Qualification under Stream 5 of the Defence Drone Initiative Marketplace is a major milestone for our team,” said Pierre Barnouin, Co-Founder & Head of Engineering at Next1 Technologies. “We look forward to collaborating with defense stakeholders to test and iterate our ultra long-range platform in support of Canada’s sovereign defense capability priorities.”

Next1 will publish detailed technical specifications for the platform at a later date, following the completion of ongoing testing and finalization of system architecture. Next1 extends its gratitude to key organizations for their ongoing development support, including the Centre de développement des composites du Québec (CDCQ), Consortium for Research and Innovation in Aerospace in Québec (CRIAQ), and the Centre d'excellence sur les drones (CED).