Kairox Systems
Kairox Systems is a YC Fall 2026 (F26) company. Based in San Francisco, CA, USA. Team of 3.
About Kairox Systems
Summary
Kairox Systems builds autonomous hybrid drones that transition between fixed-wing flight and subsurface operation in a single mission. The platform, called Tempest, targets U.S. and allied militaries for littoral missions, including mine countermeasures, coastal surveillance, and one-way strike, that currently require separate air and underwater systems. A single vehicle can fly to an area of operations, submerge beneath a surface vessel, then breach the waterline and continue flight, replacing multi-vehicle mission packages with one low-cost, attritable airframe.
Go-to-market
U.S. and allied military units are the buyers, reached through direct engagement with warfighters and defense research channels, with the Marine Corps as an identified early customer.
From the Y Combinator listing
Autonomous drones that fly and swim
Kairox Systems combines the speed of aerial drones and the stealth of underwater drones into one vehicle. We can look for mines in a strait, fly out of the water to inspect a coastline, and then engage maritime threats in one go. Joel, Alex, and Jorge all met at MIT. After conversations with warfighters and drone researchers, they decided to create a vehicle unlike any before: A long-range vehicle that is truly amphibious, low-cost enough for one-way swarms, can operate fully autonomously, and can be repurposed on the front lines. Engaged with the Marine Corps and validated with end users across the U.S. and allied militaries.
Facts
- Industrials / Industrials -> Defense
- San Francisco, CA, USA
- 3
- Active
- Early
Founders (1)
- Jorge Cavazos
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