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The rise of new warfare dynamics is accelerating a global arms race, fostering the emergence of a new generation of military-industrial chains.

Yu-Jiu Wang, founder and CEO of Tron Future, noted that the Russia-Ukraine war revealed the military potential of drones, prompting Western countries to shift their military investment focus and actively develop new strategic industries suited for future battlefields. Wang believes Taiwan can leverage its advantageous industries to carve out a unique competitive edge in the global military aerospace industry.

Wang pointed out two key observations about current international political scenarios. Firstly, the gap between China’s defense and military industries and those of the US and Russia is narrowing, with China being competitively strong in many lower-end products due to its low prices.

Secondly, the Russia-Ukraine war has highlighted the military applications of drones, revealing that traditional aircraft—some costing upwards of US$100 million in expenditure—are struggling to compete with these new types of weapons. This realization has led many Western powers to alter their military investment strategies and actively pursue new strategic industries suited for future battlefields.

Since the Russia-Ukraine war, at least four defense startups in the US have reached unicorn status—a rarity in a market where tech and commercial investment often overshadow defense spending.

Wang believes that modern battlefield is being transformed by a new industrial revolution, summarizing four major trends.

First is the acceleration of R&D cycle and the emergence of economies of scale, where the development cycle for traditional weapons, previously exceeding ten years, is expected to shorten from six months to a year. Secondly, highly automated kill chain is emerging through the integration of software, satellites, drones, and traditional firepower. Thirdly, multi-domain operations will gain importance, with the electromagnetic spectrum becoming as critical as land, sea, air, cyberspace, and information. Finally, there will be an integration of emerging technologies such as AI, sensors, big data, and communications.