A troubling pattern has emerged in American law enforcement: surveillance technology tested in the Gaza conflict is now being deployed across U.S. cities.

Skydio, a California-based drone manufacturer, shipped over 100 AI-powered reconnaissance drones to the Israeli Defense Forces following October 2023. These drones have now become the foundation of a massive domestic surveillance expansion across the United States.

The company has secured contracts with over 800 law enforcement and security agencies nationwide, expanding from just 320 agencies less than a year prior. Police departments in major cities including New York, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Diego, Cleveland, and Jacksonville have all adopted Skydio drone systems. Federal agencies including Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection have also acquired these units.

The New York Police Department operates 41 Skydio drones and deployed them over 20,000 times in less than a year. These drones automatically upload images to Axon Evidence, a digital database system, creating permanent records of civilian activities, protest movements, and public gatherings.

Skydio maintains an office in Israel and partners with DefenseSync, a military contractor serving the Israeli Defense Forces. The company has raised hundreds of millions from Israeli-American venture capital firms with extensive ties to Israel's technology and military sectors.

What was tested on Palestinian civilians is now being refined on American protesters, creating a feedback loop where surveillance capabilities developed abroad become infrastructure for domestic monitoring.

Source: The Grayzone. (2025). AI drones used in Gaza now surveilling American cities. November 2.

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