The marketplace follows several similar initiatives across the West. 

The US Department of War's counter-drone marketplace will reach full operating capability (FOC) by March 1, the head of the US' Joint Interagency Task Force-401 (JIATF-401) tasked with countering small UASs announced at Apex Defense.  

Launched late last year, the marketplace is intended to allow any user across the US military and national forces with “resources and a requirement” to filter and identify relevant counter-drone capabilities, the director of the task force, Brigadier General Matthew Ross, said at the event on 27 January.

While still very much at initial operating capability, the director was confident that the marketplace would reach FOC by March.

Each platform on the marketplace, he continued, is clearly priced and has been tested and evaluated by JIATF-401. One of the best features, he added, allows users to see the “pre-negotiated contract options” for the products, eliminating the often lengthy process of building out a contract.

The marketplace follows the establishment of the JIATF-401 in August 2025, aimed at rapidly delivering affordable small C-UASs to US forces, replacing the previous ‘Joint Counter-small Unmanned Aircraft Systems Office’.

Since then, it has attempted to shift the US counter-drone strategy from a fragmented effort to a unified, ‘whole-of-government’ approach. Activities include driving the Replicator 2 initiative, aimed at fielding thousands of uncrewed systems, and assuming oversight of the Joint Counter-sUAS University at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Several new specialized courses have been created to standardize how warfighters identify and neutralize aerial threats.

The marketplace aligns with several Western initiatives launched over the past year to streamline the discovery and procurement of defense capabilities.