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Defense Autonomy Spending Surges as AI Reshapes the Battlefield
Defense Autonomy Spending Surges as AI Reshapes the Battlefield Canada NewsWire I...
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[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n\nDefense Autonomy Spending Surges as AI Reshapes the Battlefield\n\n/* Style Definitions */\nspan.prnews_span\n{\nfont-size:8pt;\nfont-family:\"Arial\";\ncolor:black;\n}\na.prnews_a\n{\ncolor:blue;\n}\nli.prnews_li\n{\nfont-size:8pt;\nfont-family:\"Arial\";\ncolor:black;\n}\np.prnews_p\n{\nfont-size:0.62em;\nfont-family:\"Arial\";\ncolor:black;\nmargin:0in;\n}\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCanada NewsWire\n\n\nIssued on behalf of VisionWave HoldingsNEW YORK, Feb. 17, 2026 /CNW/ -- USANewsGroup.com News Commentary – Congress passed an $839 billion defense spending bill for fiscal 2026, the Pentagon's first full-year appropriation since fiscal 2024, directing $9.8 billion toward autonomous and unmanned systems across the Department of Defense[1]. The DOD's total IT budget reached $66 billion, a $1.8 billion increase from 2025, with every service branch increasing its AI allocation and the Navy alone adding $308 million in AI spending, a 22.7% year-over-year jump[2]. VisionWave Holdings (NASDAQ: VWAV), Ondas Holdings (NASDAQ: ONDS), Draganfly (NASDAQ: DPRO), BlackSky Technology (NYSE: BKSY), and Mercury Systems (NASDAQ: MRCY) are among the companies operating across these converging defense technology sectors.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe Space Force received $26 billion in direct appropriations, with an additional $13.8 billion in mandatory spending for missile defense satellite systems under the Golden Dome architecture, pushing combined resources toward $40 billion[3]. The global counter-UAS market, valued at $2.08 billion in 2025, is projected to reach $19.06 billion by 2035 as drone threats accelerate demand for detection and neutralization systems[4]. From space-based infrared tracking to AI-powered cargo inspection, the technology stack underpinning modern defense is shifting toward smarter, faster, and more autonomous systems.VisionWave Holdings (NASDAQ: VWAV) has entered into a $10 million Statement of Work for the development of qSpeed-Mine, a cryptocurrency mining acceleration and orchestration platform built on the company's QuantumSpeed computational acceleration engine.The fixed-fee, milestone-based SOW spans approximately 32 weeks, with $350,000 paid upon contract execution and the remaining balance tied directly to verified technical delivery and operational performance.Approximately $1.0 million is earned through proof-of-co...