US firm Nuburu is advancing tests of an anti-drone laser technology, seeking to disable drones without shooting them down directly: jamming their visual sensors to hinder their ability to detect and identify targets. Such devices are commonly known as "laser dazzlers". They adopt a non-kinetic engagement approach. Instead of destroying drones via missiles, artillery shells or collisions, they disrupt the optoelectronic sensors of drones through laser irradiation and degrade their capacity to capture visual data. As small drones are increasingly deployed in military operations, border patrols, port security and the protection of critical infrastructure, low-damage and reusable counter-drone solutions have garnered growing attention. Nuburu’s ongoing tests are developed to address this exact demand.

  This round of testing was conducted at the facilities of the Italian company Tekne S.p.A., aiming to assess whether Nuburu's laser system can interfere with the optoelectronic sensors of drones and impair their ability to capture and identify visual information.

  In one test scenario, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was tasked with locating an operator. Test results showed that under laser jamming, the operator could move to a position 20 meters, approximately 66 feet, away from the UAV without being detected. Another test involving two UAVs evaluated two laser modes: continuous wave and pulsed laser. During this phase, the laser output power was kept within standard safety limits. Subsequent additional assessments increased the laser power up to five times the regulatory limit to test the system’s maximum performance under higher output conditions. According to Nuburu, the laser dazzler delivered consistent sensor jamming effects across all test configurations at a maximum distance of 100 meters, roughly 328 feet. However, these results were obtained in a controlled test environment, and further verification is required to confirm its performance across diverse scenarios. Dario Barisoni, CEO of Nuburu, stated: “Technically speaking, these tests confirm that the system can achieve sensor denial against multiple UAV configurations under controlled conditions.” Barisoni noted that the next phase will focus on engineering advancement, with key priorities including configuration optimization, safety reviews, range modeling, platform integration, and the establishment of repeatable qualification verification benchmarks for daytime and nighttime optical defense mission packages. Nuburu stated that data collected from these tests will inform future laser dazzler designs, including a system that integrates green, blue and infrared lasers onto a single platform. The company also mentioned that under the Nuburu Defense Italian Plan, this technology may be integrated into Tekne’s tactical platforms and future mission systems to provide round-the-clock protection for land, maritime and fixed-site environments. Following the completion of the tests, Nuburu and Tekne S.p.A. formed a joint engineering team to further refine the system design and prepare for subsequent verification activities.