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Born in basement workshops, Ukraine’s drone start-ups are racing into industry, led by Fire Point—a firm that pivoted from film work to become a military contractor. Executives say it holds $1 billion in contracts this year and builds long-range FP-1 drones at 30 secret sites, used in strikes on Russian refineries while it scales a longer-range Flamingo. Its ascent has prompted scrutiny: accusations of favoritism, a corruption inquiry, quality complaints, and an audit finding missed price talks that added $16.7 million. Fire Point says flaws are fixed and claims its drones conduct 60% of attacks inside Russia.

Prepared by Christopher Adams and reviewed by editorial team.