Anduril Industries’ UK arm has grown its workforce from around 20 employees two years ago to over 100, with Managing Director Rich Drake highlighting multiple opportunities for its autonomy technology in British defence programmes. The company maintains engineering staff in London’s City headquarters, mission autonomy developers, and a flight-testing site in Llanbedr, west Wales.
Drake emphasizes Anduril’s focus on ‘one-to-many’ autonomy, enabling a single operator to oversee multiple uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) simultaneously. ‘That is really where we think we are a force-multiplier,’ he states, adding that the approach brings ‘affordable mass to the battlefield.’ To bolster its efforts, Anduril plans a new systems integration laboratory in London, akin to an ‘Iron Bird’ facility, positioning the UK as a global R&D center exporting autonomy skills worldwide.
Key opportunities include the UK’s interest in autonomous collaborative platforms (ACPs) for the armed forces and Royal Air Force integration with crewed fighters. The 2025 Strategic Defence Review calls for ACP investments alongside Future Combat Air Systems and Global Combat Air Programme. Anduril eyes an ‘ITAR-free’ Fury platform, equipped with UK sensors and payloads if selected.
Supporting this expansion, AtkinsRéalis entered a teaming agreement with Anduril UK on 17 February 2026 to provide safety, assurance, and regulatory expertise for uncrewed flight programmes. AtkinsRéalis aids navigation of Military Aviation Authority and Civil Aviation Authority approvals, cyber security standards, and proportionate defence development lines. Rich Drake notes: ‘This collaboration is about how the UK builds and fields modern defence systems… pairing Anduril’s software-first approach with AtkinsRéalis’ strengths in assurance and regulation.’ David Clark, AtkinsRéalis Vice President for Global Defence, adds: ‘Through this agreement… we can contribute our decades of defence delivery… to help deliver trusted, deployable autonomous systems.’
Anduril UK, operating since 2019, holds contracts with Royal Marines and Strategic Command, committing to R&D in autonomous systems and AI-enabled command-and-control.