President Donald Trump’s eldest sons have launched a series of investments in the domestic drone industry that could position them to profit from Pentagon contracts as American forces deploy one-way attack drones in combat against Iran for the first time.
Donald Trump Jr., 48, and Eric Trump, 42, announced their backing of Powerus, a West Palm Beach, Florida-based drone manufacturer formed in 2025 that plans to produce more than 10,000 units per month. The company is set to become publicly traded on the Nasdaq by completing a reverse merger with Aureus Greenway Holdings, a firm that owns golf courses.
The investments come as the Pentagon’s Drone Dominance Program prepares to spend $1.1 billion by 2027 procuring hundreds of thousands of American-made systems. The Trump administration in December banned new Chinese drone models, which had long dominated consumer and commercial markets, citing national security concerns.
The timing has triggered accusations of impropriety. Eight U.S. troops have been killed in the Iran conflict, including six service members honored in a dignified transfer ceremony over the weekend. Iran has deployed Shahed drones costing between $20,000 and $50,000 per unit while the U.S. burns through interceptor missiles priced at up to $15 million each.
“It’s not likely that President Trump is making decisions on companies bidding for Pentagon contracts. But everyone who is making those decisions is certainly aware of who is involved in those companies,” Dylan Hedtler-Gaudette, director of government affairs at Project on Government Oversight, told ABC News.
The Trump brothers made their investment through American Ventures, one of the family’s investment firms. Dominari Securities, the Trump-backed investment bank involved in the family’s cryptocurrency transactions, also owns shares in Aureus. Separately, the Korea Climate & Governance Improvement Fund has committed approximately $50 million to the deal.
Powerus has already bought three smaller drone firms and plans to scale up manufacturing rapidly. Andrew Fox, the company’s CEO, who spent almost 30 years leading a New York facilities management firm and lacks experience in the drone sector, stood by the business rationale. “The drone market is certainly going to grow faster than, say, golf courses are,” Fox told The Wall Street Journal.
The Trump family has executed multiple deals in the defense sector since President Trump’s inauguration. Donald Jr. purchased 331,000 shares of Unusual Machines, a drone component manufacturer where he sits on the advisory board. The stake is now worth approximately $4 million. Unusual Machines has secured Pentagon contracts, including an agreement to manufacture 3,500 drone motors and other parts.
Eric Trump invested in Xtend, an Israeli drone maker that boasts of its “low cost per kill” ratio and was used by the IDF to map tunnels in Gaza. Xtend opened a U.S. facility in Tampa, Florida, and secured a multi-million-dollar Department of War contract in November to develop AI-enabled one-way attack drone kits.
The Pentagon announced that it used one-way drones in combat for the first time against Iran. The drones have proven to be a significant factor in the conflict, according to U.S. Central Command.
The financial windfall has been substantial for both brothers. According to Forbes, Donald Jr.’s net worth has increased sixfold since January 2025, rising from about $50 million to $300 million, fueled by his crypto investments and his position at a venture capital firm whose portfolio companies secured at least four federal contracts during the Trump administration.
Eric’s financial rise has been even steeper. Forbes valued him at around $40 million before his father’s return to power, but his current net worth stands at approximately $400 million, a roughly tenfold increase. The Nasdaq debut of his cryptocurrency mining company, American Bitcoin, briefly pushed his personal stake toward $950 million before the stock collapsed 85 percent.
Powerus co-founder Brett Velicovich, a former U.S. Army special operations veteran who has also advised drone companies in the United States and Ukraine, said the firm is exploring the acquisition of Ukrainian drone manufacturers or licensing their technology for production in America. This strategy aligns with the Pentagon’s preference for weapons built domestically.
The arrangement puts the Trump family in a position to profit from policies the administration has engineered while holding financial stakes in companies positioned to fill the market gap those policies created. At least 165 schoolgirls were killed when a school in Minab, Iran, was struck during the conflict that began after President Trump authorized military operations against the country.
The Trump Organization responded on behalf of Eric Trump, saying: “I am incredibly proud to invest in companies I believe in. Drones are clearly the wave of the future.”