Big Tech’s military bet is paying off

A photo provided by the US Central Command showing Lucas drones made by SpektreWorks. After years of criticism and financial risk, start-ups are generating rewards from their investments in defence tech. — US Central Command via The New York Times

AS the conflict in the Middle East conti­nues, intelligence gathered by the Pentagon is being analysed by technology from an artificial intelligence company on a system run by the data analytics firm.

Drones created by a defence tech startup in Arizona have emerged as a key piece of the US arsenal.