DroneShield has today (28 July) released the third generation of its proprietary radio frequency intelligence engine for counter-uncrewed aerial systems operations. RfAI-3 prioritises wideband detection to sense drone threats beyond known and pre-classified emitters.
Rather than searching the spectrum for signals it already knows, RfAI-3 works by detecting the emissions present and then fingerprinting each one against previously observed drone signatures. Where a match exists, the emitter is classified with full detail. Where it does not, RfAI-3 generates a signature for the unknown emission and presents it to the operator with a confidence assessment, ranked against the wider spectrum picture. “Nothing is discarded for being unfamiliar, and every new signature the model generates becomes a reference for the next encounter,” Droneshield said.
RfAI, initially developed in 2018, provided real-time classification of known drone emitters. RfAI-2, released in 2023, turned the RF intelligence dataset into a continuously expanding asset, with new drone models, protocols and threat vectors identified through DroneShield’s ongoing acquisition and characterisation programme and distributed to the deployed fleet. RfAI-3’s wideband detection extends capability beyond the RF dataset.
“An RfAI-3-powered deployment today will be more capable six months after commissioning than it is on day one, not because of a hardware upgrade, but because the intelligence it draws on as it continues to grow,” Droneshield said.
RfAI-3 is specifically designed for DroneShield’s next-generation hardware platforms, with initial releases expected in the second half of calendar year 2026 and further releases through 2027. DroneShield’s existing product lineup continues to be supported under the company’s software subscription model, including ongoing delivery of expanded emitter coverage as the RF intelligence dataset grows.
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