Skydio, the leading U.S.-based drone manufacturer and global pioneer in autonomous flight, chose Greater Zurich in 2026 as the location for its new European research and development hub. Their Greater Zurich office will focus on advancing autonomous multi-drone systems, bringing engineers to the forefront of robotics and AI-driven flight innovation. The expansion marks a key step in Skydio’s growing European presence and underscores Greater Zurich’s position as a premier hub for cutting-edge robotics and autonomy research.
Skydio is the leading U.S.-based drone manufacturer and world leader in world leader in flying robots, leveraging breakthrough AI to create the world's most intelligent flying machines for use by public safety, government, utility, and enterprise customers. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in San Mateo, California, the company grew from a small startup to the largest U.S. drone manufacturer by volume. Skydio's team is made up of leading experts in AI, robotics, cameras, and electric vehicles from top companies, research labs, and universities from around the world.
About Skydio
Skydio customers have flown over 3.8M+ customer flights to date (see live ticker) and the company has shipped more than 60,000 autonomous flying robots worldwide. Skydio continues to expand its footprint in the European defense market and now supplies autonomous small uncrewed aircraft systems to 15 member countries in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Recent milestones include:
- August 2025: The NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) selected Skydio to supply and support small ISR drones across NATO member nations within the Uncrewed Aerial Systems Support Partnership.
- July 2025: Skydio is awarded an initial tender totaling 101 million Norwegian Kroner (approximately $9.4M USD) to supply autonomous small uncrewed aerial systems (sUAS) to the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Defence.
- February 2025: Skydio is awarded a contract by Spainʼs Ministry of Defence (MINISDEF) to supply Skydio X10D drones to the Spanish Armed Forces in a contract worth up to €18 million.
Skydio Opens R&D Office in Greater Zurich to Access Top AI and Robotics Talent
Skydio announced the opening of a new research and development office in Zürich, Switzerland, on April 3, 2026. The office will focus on advancing Skydio's autonomous multi-drone systems, with a team of engineers working at the frontier of robotics and flight autonomy.
Following the opening of its first European R&D office in Tampere, Finland, Skydio continues to expand its presence across the continent, this time in Zürich, Switzerland, the robotics capital of Europe. The move reflects Skydio's deliberate approach to building where the world's best talent is. The company's Bay Area headquarters sits adjacent to UC Berkeley and Stanford University, and its Boston office draws from MIT's deep engineering ecosystem. Zürich follows the same logic; ETH Zürich and the University of Zürich are among the most respected research institutions in autonomous systems
globally.
Skydio's Director of Engineering, Autonomy Systems, Davide Falanga, will lead the new Swiss office. He has been with the company for more than four years at the San Mateo headquarters and brings deep expertise in building reliable and scalable autonomous flight systems.
The Greater Zurich office expands Skydio's global engineering footprint as the company accelerates development of its autonomous multi-drone platform. Engineers in Zürich will work closely with teams across Skydio's U.S. locations on core autonomy challenges, including multi-vehicle coordination, GPS-denied navigation, and real-time decision-making at the edge.
Facts & figures about Skydio
- Industry / Sector: Robotics, artificial intelligence
- Founding year: 2014
- Headquarters: San Mateo, California, USA
- Employees (global): ~900 employees around the world
- Functions established in Greater Zurich: R&D
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