Across Taiwan, drone manufacturers are seeing export growth as they increasingly expand overseas to achieve economies of scale that the domestic market alone cannot support.
PHOTO: CARBON-BASED TECHNOLOGY
TAIPEI – Taiwanese drone maker Carbon-Based Technology is set to more than double its workforce of 60 and move into a new manufacturing facility that is three times bigger, as global demand for its lightweight yet high-performance designs soars.
Stacy Yu, the company’s chief executive officer, said its international business activities have more than doubled in recent years, with partnerships established across the United States, Japan, Europe and South-east Asia.
Across Taiwan, drone manufacturers are seeingexplosive export growthas they increasingly expand overseas to achieve economies of scale that the domestic market alone cannot support.
In the first quarter of 2026, Taiwan’s drone exports surged past US$115 million (S$148 million), already eclipsing thetotalexport value of US$93 million recorded for all of 2025.
The majority were shipped to the Czech Republic and Poland, although experts believe the ultimate destination was Ukraine.
The expansion is the cornerstone of Taiwan’s broader ambition to establish itself as a regional hub for unmanned aerial systems that are “non-red”, or China-free – an initiative backed by a NT$44.2 billion (S$1.8 billion) investment plan by the government through 2030. As some countries grow increasingly wary over security concerns surrounding critical technologies from China, which dominates the global commercial drone market, Taiwan seeks to position itself as a trusted supplier of drones free of Chinese components.
