DARPA Lift Challenge Portal

A&M SIM LLC provides real-time, high-fidelity UAV simulation and test capabilities to support heavy-lift VTOL / drone teams from early design through flight testing. Our core contribution is a digital-twin simulation environment that can ingest real-time or scenario-based weather (wind, gusts, turbulence, temperature, pressure, precipitation) and evaluate aircraft performance and control robustness under realistic conditions.

Airframe and propulsion system design, structural optimization, and payload integration concepts.

ADDC specializes in low-cost mechanical design and COTS sourcing. Besides developing the structure, we can help develop your technical roadmap for PX4 configuration and robot operating system (ROS) integration. Tags: Design Services, Autonomous Charging, Testing, Prototyping.

- Avionics Networks designs BVLOS communications for UAVs, Made in USA.

- Official Viasat BGAN manufacturer with integrated video compression.

- Official Verizon partner delivering cellular designed for UAV altitude & mobility.

- Official Orbius partner providing Starlink Mini–based UAV solutions. Tethered fiber-optic solutions for secure, EMI-immune high-bandwidth operations.

- Aviation- and military-proven architectures BVLOS, ISR, and contested-environment communications.

- If your UAV flies BVLOS, talk to us!

High energy density lithium metal battery cells optimized for weight-critical VTOL UAV platforms:

- High power discharge capability suitable for demanding takeoff and climb profiles

- Engineering support for custom integration into heavy-lift drone architectures

- Rapid evaluation samples to support accelerated development timelines

- U.S.-based technical coordination and design feedback

Our battery platforms are designed for aerospace applications where specific energy, power density, and system-level mass efficiency are key performance drivers. Teams may contact us directly via email for technical coordination and evaluation sample requests. We are available for rapid response discussions to align battery boundary conditions with mission profiles.

Compass Systems, Inc. is an aerospace and advanced robotics company with over 25 years of experience building and fielding unmanned systems at scale. Our multidisciplinary team of engineers, designers, technicians, and FAA Part 107 pilots specializes in fast-cycle development, flight operations, and advanced manufacturing, helping partners rapidly move from concept to flight-ready, deployable hardware for demanding mission environments.

Harmonic gear boxes for light weight actuators.

CR Flight designs and manufactures high-power-density electric motors for UAV propulsion. We provide custom motor architectures optimized for high torque, thermal management, and continuous power required for heavy-lift VTOL and fixed-wing platforms, including prototyping and production hardware

Equipment.

DAYTON-GRANGER (DG) is a global leader in the design and manufacture of airborne COM/NAV Antennas, Electrostatic Protection and Lightning Protection products. DG provides original equipment to nearly all airframe manufacturers. DG’s broad range of antennas includes antennas for all types of aircraft.

Synthetic design and mission datasets, plus open-source generators, to support early-stage trade-space exploration for the DARPA Lift Challenge. DBbun provides fully synthetic VTOL design spaces and large-scale mission simulations focused on extreme payload ratios (>4× vehicle weight), endurance, and robustness. These resources help teams rapidly explore, compare, and stress- test hypothetical aircraft concepts before committing to hardware. Datasets (Hugging Face): https://huggingface.co/datasets/DBbun/DARPA_Lift_2026 Source code (GitHub): https://github.com/DBbun/dbbun-darpa-lift

Aircraft Engineering Design Services, Propulsion Optimization, Testing, Prototyping.

We are willing to loan out our ultra-high power to weight ratio internal combustion engines (ICE) to competitors at zero cost. This frees up competitor resources to be applied for other components of their drones.

- EOS offers additive manufacturing (AM) solutions for both polymer and metal materials via laser powder bed fusion technology.

- EOS offers co-engineering support services including initial prototyping, Design-For-AM part optimization, and process validation for serial production.

- EOS also offers Turnkey solutions whereby AM equipment can be purchased and initially installed at EOS facilities to accelerate the product development and qualification process

Falcon Aerospace is offering specialized engineering services and supporting software tools to Lift Challenge competitors.

We provide a rapid UAS development workflow focused on aerodynamic modeling, flight simulation, and hardware in the loop testing for nontraditional configurations. Specifically, we can:

- Generate tuned aerodynamic models from competitor geometry and mission constraints.

- Build custom real-time flight simulators (with Unreal Engine visuals) configured to the competitor’s vehicle and control architecture.

- Integrate flight controllers and ground stations into the simulation environment for HIL development and testing.

- Develop initial flight test and training scenarios to support safer, more efficient envelope expansion.

Our MAVRIK simulator builds vehicles modularly, enabling rapid testing of morphing geometries, telescoping/transitioning wings, tilt rotors, and attaching external components to the vehicle.

We designed our tools specifically to handle odd configurations and support rapid development and testing.

Donations and Technical know-how.

UAS, GCS, Payloads, Batteries, accessories.

iKey, LTD (Austin, TX, founded 1989) manufactures rugged, industrial-grade keyboards and peripherals for harsh and mobile environments. Assembled in the USA, products serve Fortune 500 clients in over 100 countries. Key Features: • Durability: IP65/IP67/NEMA 4X-rated; stainless steel or ABS polycarbonate housings. • Sealed & Sanitizable: Silicone keypads resist water, dust, chemicals; antimicrobial for medical use. • Backlighting: Red or NVIS-compliant green for low-light (military/public safety). • Connectivity: USB, PS/2, Bluetooth; rechargeable, dual-mode options. • Customization: 350+ models, 17 languages, glove-friendly keys, OEM integration. Product Types: • Desktop/Panel-Mount: e.g., DT-1000 (full-size, stainless). • Mobile/Vehicle: e.g., BT-80 (Bluetooth, forklift-ready). • Specialized: Medical, military (e.g., FT-88-911-TP), OEM (e.g., for Toughbooks).

Supercritical CO2 Turbine and Turbine Design Services to generate power.

The company offers a reusable and modular control logic that enhances system stability and adaptability by dynamically integrating memory and control, which is provided with full documentation and validation for teams to embed in their own architectures.

We have a 30-acre limited access test facility that replicates an urban environment for teams to test and validate their new designs. Our team has extensive experience with drone flight testing. Additional resources available are Battery Lab, which provides battery cell and module testing, ten wind tunnels for aerodynamic testing.

A certified small business with 20 years of financial and program management to the FAA with strong acquisitions experience.

Nemesys Systems can support Lift Challenge competitors with in-kind technical enablement—not as a prime air-vehicle designer, but as an architecture + integration layer that helps teams rapidly integrate, control, and operationalize payloads and subsystems as designs evolve. Specifically, we can provide: (1) integration engineering and interface definition to standardize how your aircraft talks to payloads (and how payloads talk back), reducing one-off wiring/software churn; (2) a human-centric payload C2 HMI delivered over web or TAK so operators can manage payload functions cleanly; and (3) a common operating picture to make test, demo, and mission workflows more scalable across teams and configurations.

Robust and cost-effective electrolytic hydrogen production technology able to work with intermittent power and natural water of sea-water with impurities making it highly valuable for remote and inhospitable environments. The generated hydrogen is expected to be usable for lighter than air drone concepts as well as a power source for long duration endurance drones running on hydrogen fuel cells.

I have half a dozen subject matter experts contributing to space and lunar mission projects. Please reach out if you need specialty aerospace engineering services.

We own and operate a 80+ acre private UAS Test Range 20 miles outside of Kingman, AZ. It is in Class G Airspace and remote. Perfect for testing new designs. The Test Range is a registered UAS Test Site with the FAA, and is designated as "53AZ". The range is open 24/7 with lighted runways for flying in the cover of darkness.

3D printers that can make parts with a better strength-to-weight and strength-to-stiffness ratio than 6061 T6. In Production with multiple UAS Primes today. If you’re an academic team or non-industry, special pricing is also available. Go to https://www.panethondesign.com/darpalift to learn more!

Funding, Electric Propulsion System, Design Consulting.

Phillips Corp offers equipment, support and services to DARPA Lift competitors in the following areas:

- DFAM evaluation and industrial print optimization

- Leveraging 3YOURMIND services

- Includes metal and polymer applications

- Metal part print & repair services using our hybrid (CNC & DED) technology

- Potential for onsite metal repair services during DARPA competition (prior coordination required)

- Access to expeditionary metal working Phillips hybrid mobile system

- CNC Programming & Optimization support

- Engineering Turnkey Services

Go-to-Market, Business Development, Fundraising Support.

Battery pack modules with requisite power density requirements.

We offer PteroSim as a PX4 and ArduPilot-compatible simulation platform for deterministic SIL and HIL testing of multirotor and VTOL autonomy. PteroSim enables MAVLink-level validation of mission logic, payload operations, and control behavior under configurable weather conditions, including wind, gusts, turbulence, and atmospheric disturbances, as well as sensor noise and degradation. The platform is designed for reproducible testing, rapid iteration, and pre-field evaluation of autonomy stacks, helping teams reduce real-world test hours and technical risk.

We offer high-performance propulsion hardware and precision engineering services tailored for heavy-lift UAS. Our primary offering is the 'Active-Cooling Propulsion Pod,' which includes: Custom-Machined 2806.5 Motors: NDAA/DFARS-compliant motors featuring proprietary 3-axis CNC-machined centrifugal cooling vanes to prevent thermal throttling during 110lb+ lift maneuvers. Precision Airframe Components: Rapid prototyping of ultra-lightweight, honeycombed aluminum hubs, motor mounts, and arm connectors using our in-house Syil X7 CNC infrastructure. Bench Testing & Validation: Access to aerospace-grade 'L-Arm' thrust stands for high-fidelity data collection, including thrust-to-power curves and thermal mapping. On-Site Technical Support: For teams testing or competing in the Huntsville/Redstone Arsenal region, we offer 24-hour turnaround on hardware repairs and design iterations.

We specialize in critical product design for the defense, aerospace and medical device industries. We can offer custom PCB design, testing and fabrication. As well as custom mechanical design, prototyping, materials/composites knowledge, soft goods and manufacturing. We have active clearances, ITAR registered, and are CMMC Level 2 compliant.

Services: https://x.com/e_seahorse, https://seascope-technologies-8l50p73.gamma.site/

With a perimeter of 114 nautical miles, Skyway Range encompasses 1,200 square miles of urban/rural testing conditions with diverse topography and infrastructure. Combined with the unmatched proximity to Tulsa's city center and Tulsa International Airport’s Class C airspace, Skyway Range offers more than the typical test range. This unique flexibility gives companies the ability to demonstrate safety, security, and performance in a variety of conditions - enabling adaptation to new regulations and use cases. With 300+ flying days per year and advanced indoor weather testing capabilities provided by WindShape, the Skyway Range offers an unmatched breadth of testing capabilities for UAS and AAM companies.

Sixdof Space specializes in high-speed optical positioning systems that use infrared beacons to provide real-time position and orientation data. Sixdof’s technology integrates with OEM hardware and can significantly enhance precision landing capabilities. Try the Sixdof Development Kit and see what’s possible.

We are contributing vision-language-model guided guidance, navigation, and control software originally developed for autonomous satellite operations in microgravity. For this competition, the software is being repurposed and adapted to control terrestrial drones, leveraging the same perception-driven closed-loop autonomy to operate under uncertain and degraded sensing conditions.

We offer expertise in designing, building, and testing bespoke turbomachinery for novel applications, including microturbines and unique blade designs. We also have extensive experience with autonomous vehicles, including UAVs, EVTOL battery and motor design, and testing. We have existing test facilities in these areas to help our clients achieve their R&D goals on-time and on-budget.

Long-range wireless telemetry and video streaming.

UPM stocks a wide range of raw materials that may be helpful for individuals and teams needing materials like aluminum, titanium, steel, and nickel alloys. Please inquire for your metal needs! And if we don't have it, we can recommend someone else who might. Please email abland@upmet.com for any metal needs and UPM will do it's best to help you get the metals you need to compete.

Heavy-lift BLDC motor designers and manufacturers invested in the future of US drone innovation. Bring us your designs and we'll make them at cost or cheaper.

We are a hands-on driven company. We can build your electronics, consult/advise on system architecture, physically construct prototypes, develop test stands, control algorithms, develop hybrid electric propulsion, etc.

We are prepared to offer competitors access to our library of over 18,000 publications, papers and presentations since 1943 on topics pertaining to vertical flight. We also have the evtol aircraft directory at evtol.news and the aircraft directory at https://vertipedia.vtol.org/aircraft.

Heavy lift 44807 consulting and piloting.

BVLOS control software.

Design and manufacturing.

Custom battery packs and thermal management systems.