Palladyne AI, formerly Sarcos Robotics (Salt Lake City, UT), has transformed from building exoskeletons to developing embodied AI software powering autonomous drones and robots, securing Air Force contracts, key patents, and a growing defense-tech footprint.
From Robotics Pioneer to Defense AI Powerhouse: Palladyne AI’s Utah Comeback
Salt Lake City, Utah — November 11, 2025
Born from Utah’s robotics legacy, Palladyne AI is quietly reemerging as one of the state’s most advanced defense-tech innovators. The Salt Lake City firm—once known as Sarcos Technology and Robotics and previously covered by TechBuzz—has reinvented itself as a developer of “embodied AI” software, a term it uses to describe artificial intelligence that operates directly on machines, not in the cloud.
After decades building robotic hardware, the company shifted gears in March 2024, exiting manufacturing and rebranding as Palladyne AI. The pivot reflects a larger bet: that the future of autonomy lies not in physical robots alone, but in the software that gives them intelligence and independence.
From Exoskeletons to Embodied Intelligence
Palladyne AI’s transformation traces back to its roots as Sarcos, known, among many things, for developing high-profile robotic exoskeletons designed to augment human strength for industrial and military use. Those systems drew attention—and contracts—but the company’s leadership ultimately saw a ceiling in building human-worn robotics.
“That was valuable R&D, but the market for wearable robots is narrow and hardware-intensive,” said Tommy Brown, Vice President of Business Development and Sales, who sat down recently with TechBuzz. “We realized our real value wasn’t in the metal or mechanics—it was in the intelligence that made those machines adaptive and useful.”
That realization drove the company’s March 2024 rebrand to Palladyne AI and its shift toward “embodied AI”—software that gives machines the ability to understand and act within the physical world. By moving away from human exoskeletons and focusing on embedded autonomy, the company opened the door to far larger commercial and defense markets.
“Embodied AI scales,” Brown explained. “The same intelligence that helps a robot arm sand an aircraft wing can help a drone map terrain, or a maintenance robot learn new tasks on the fly. Once you build the brain, it can live in anything that moves, flies, or rolls.”
The pivot has allowed Palladyne AI to position itself at the center of multiple sectors—from aerospace and defense to industrial manufacturing, logistics, and inspection—without the limitations and cost structures of custom hardware.
A New Air Force Contract Signals Momentum
In January, the company secured a new Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) contract to migrate its Palladyne Pilot AI software to next-generation, U.S.-made AI chipsets. The 26-month project will expand Palladyne Pilot’s compatibility beyond current Nvidia and Qualcomm hardware, aligning with the Department of Defense’s push to secure domestic AI supply chains.
Built on Palladyne AI’s Closed Loop Ubiquitous Tasking and Control of Heterogeneous Exploring Sensors (CLUTCHES) framework, Palladyne Pilot fuses inputs from multiple sensors—cameras, radar, RF—to create shared situational awareness across fleets of unmanned aerial vehicles. In practice, it allows drones to coordinate in real time, tracking and managing targets collaboratively without constant operator input.
AFRL’s Dr. Peter Zulch called the work “critical to reducing the cognitive burden on the warfighter while improving mission effectiveness.” Initial testing has shown that Palladyne Pilot can manage multiple drone types as a synchronized swarm, providing the kind of distributed autonomy the Pentagon has been seeking for years.
Patent Secures the Architecture of Machine Collaboration
That same architecture gained legal protection this fall. In November, Palladyne AI was awarded U.S. Patent No. 12,452,957 B2, titled “Closed Loop Tasking and Control of Heterogeneous Sensor Networks.” The patent secures the core framework behind Palladyne Pilot and the company’s industrial AI platform, Palladyne IQ.
The technology defines how drones, robots, and sensors share only the most meaningful data points they collect—what the company calls “feature-based communication.” These insights are merged into a common operational picture, allowing the network to re-task itself dynamically, even in low-bandwidth or contested environments.
“This patent protects the brain and nervous system of machine collaboration,” said Ben Wolff, Palladyne AI’s President and CEO. “It establishes Palladyne AI as the technological nucleus for swarm autonomy—systems that can observe, reason, and act collectively.”
For a company that once focused on building exoskeletons and robotic arms, the shift is striking. The patent formalizes Palladyne AI’s reinvention as an AI-first software company with defensible IP at the center of the defense autonomy race.
Palladyne Pilot Takes Flight Through ©anfly Partnership
Palladyne AI’s expansion from R&D to deployment accelerated in October through a new partnership with Draganfly (Tampa, FL), a veteran UAV manufacturer with government and commercial customers worldwide. The collaboration embeds the Palladyne Pilot AI software directly into Draganfly’s drone platforms, enabling intelligent swarm behavior and autonomous coordination across multiple aircraft.
By merging Palladyne AI’s sensor-fusion and closed-loop control software with Draganfly’s modular airframes, the companies aim to deliver drones that can track, classify, and respond collaboratively—all managed by a single operator “on the loop.” The integration broadens Palladyne Pilot’s reach from military research programs to field-ready platforms for defense, emergency response, and industrial surveillance.
“Draganfly has earned its reputation as one of the most trusted names in UAV innovation,” Wolff said. “Integrating Palladyne Pilot gives their systems a new level of autonomy—capabilities that were, until recently, limited to large and costly defense platforms.”
The companies plan to extend the integration internationally, subject to export approvals. The collaboration underscores Palladyne AI’s broader strategy of pairing its embodied AI software with trusted hardware partners to deliver secure, interoperable, U.S.-made autonomy to defense and industrial customers.
Palladyne IQ Platform Targets Industrial Robotics
While Palladyne Pilot drives Palladyne AI’s growth in aerospace and defense, the company’s Palladyne IQ platform extends the same AI principles to industrial automation. Palladyne IQ is designed for robots that perform high-risk or challenging or variable environments—such as sanding or coating aircraft components—using AI to identify parts and execute tasks autonomously.
At Air Force maintenance depots, Palladyne IQ is being tested to support predictive maintenance and precision finishing tasks that typically require skilled labor. “Robots don’t call in sick,” Brown said. “Once they’re trained, they can handle tough, repetitive, and sometimes dangerous work with consistency.”
Utah Roots, National Relevance
Palladyne AI operates from Salt Lake City’s Industry Building, employing roughly 75 engineers and developers. Earlier this month it exhibited at 47G's 2025 Zero Gravity Summit. It plans to host the 47G Manufacturing Quarterly Summit at Industry in January 21, 2026, where it will demonstrate its embodied AI platforms to partners in defense and manufacturing.
The company’s resurgence adds another layer to Utah’s fast-growing aerospace and defense corridor, joining firms like Red Cat, Fortem Technologies, and Teal Drones that are building next-generation autonomy systems from the Wasatch Front.
Brown sees the shift toward embodied AI as both economic and cultural. “We have to make industrial and defense work more appealing, more intelligent, and more resilient,” he said. “AI isn’t replacing people—it’s extending what they can accomplish.”
With the Air Force contract, a new patent, and its AI software now flying on Draganfly drones, Palladyne AI’s reinvention is gaining traction. What began as a Utah robotics company has evolved into a defense AI supplier with both the intellectual property and the partnerships to back it up.
The company's pivot from from robotics to autonomy is the logical next step in giving machines the ability to understand and act. As Wolff put it, “We’re not just programming machines anymore—we’re teaching them how to think together.”
47G members may register for the January 21, 2026 47G Event: Manufacturing Committee Meeting hosted by Palladyne AI: https://luma.com/5am8qo1x
Learn more at www.palladyneai.com and see Palladyne AI and Draganfly videos below.