The Autonomous Drone Tech Stack & Economics of Drones — Yaroslav Azhnyuk, The Fourth Law & Guest Host Noah Smith, Noahpinion
type: NewsArticle
description: Ukrainian tech founder Yaroslav Azhnyuk, who transitioned from building PetCube to founding AI-guided drone company The Fourth Law, told Noah Smith that Ukraine produced 4 million FPV drones last year while China could produce 4 billion, warning that the West is unprepared for the modern autonomous battlefield. In a two-hour discussion, Azhnyuk detailed how FPV drones now cause 70-80% of frontline casualties, outlined five levels of drone autonomy, and argued that Western defense readiness is falling behind due to China's manufacturing advantage and the widening gap in drone technology and tactics.
date published: 2026-05-18 13:45:32+00:00
date modified: 2026-05-25 00:19:20.961502+00:00
language: en
is accessible for free: true
article body: The future of war has been evolving before our eyes in Ukraine, yet the west still plans to fight the last war. In this special episode, guest host ** Noah Smith (@noahpinion)** and **sit down with** [Brandon Anderson](https://open.substack.com/users/94300760-brandon-anderson?utm_source=mentions)**Yaroslav Azhnyuk (**, a serial tech founder who went from building [@YaroslavAzhnyuk](https://x.com/YaroslavAzhnyuk))**to founding** [PetCube](https://petcube.com/)**, one of the world’s most advanced AI-guided drone companies. Over two hours we cover the technology, tactics, and geopolitics of drone warfare, and why the modern battlefield has already left the West behind:** [The Fourth Law](https://thefourthlaw.ai/)Yaroslav’s personal history and the Ukraine war [00:01:04 – 00:14:01] The modern drone tech stack: why FPV drones are the new god of war, the future of the rifleman, fiber optic vs. AI, five levels of autonomy, and the eight dimensions of the autonomous battlefield [00:14:01 – 01:05:13] The geopolitics and economics of drones: China’s manufacturing advantage, the drone race, Western defense readiness, countermeasures, and why the gap is widening [01:05:13 – 01:58:57] For those looking for [Noah Smith](https://open.substack.com/users/8243895-noah-smith?utm_source=mentions)’s commentary, it really gets going around the 00:51:31 mark. **Yaroslav Azhnyuk / The Fourth Law:** The Fourth Law: [https://thefourthlaw.ai](https://thefourthlaw.ai) **Noah Smith**: Substack: [Noah Smith](https://open.substack.com/users/8243895-noah-smith?utm_source=mentions) ## Timestamps 00:00:00 Cold Open: China’s 4 Billion Drones and the Cameras-to-Explosives Pipeline 00:01:04 Introduction: Brandon, Noah Smith, and Yaroslav Azhnyuk 00:05:41 From Tech Entrepreneur to Defense: PetCube, Brave One, and the D3 Fund 00:10:42 The Ethics of Building Weapons: Dual-Use Technology and the Wolf at the Door 00:14:01 The Tech Stack: Cameras, Autonomy Modules, Interceptors, and a Semiconductor Fab 00:18…
publisher: Web Pulse
keywords: autonomous-vehicles, ai-startups, ai-policy, robotics, computer-vision
mentions: Yaroslav Azhnyuk
mentions: Noah Smith
mentions: PetCube
mentions: The Fourth Law
mentions: Ukraine
mentions: China
citation: CreativeWork