Defending the Skies: Lockheed Martin and Microsoft Collaborate on Next-Gen C-UAS Technologies

As the skies grow more contested and threats from drones and other unmanned aerial systems (UAS) evolve in scale and sophistication, the need for advanced, adaptive defense solutions has never been greater. Microsoft is joining with Lockheed Martin to develop Sanctum -- a new era of counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems (C-UAS) capabilities that combines Lockheed Martin’s mission expertise with the power, scale, and intelligence of Microsoft’s cloud and AI technologies to protect lives and defend our nation’s critical infrastructure.
 

The future of air defense won’t be won by a single sensor, effector, or algorithm. It will be won by an ecosystem that detects, optimizes, and mitigates as one. Lockheed Martin’s Sanctum C-UAS solution embodies that vision - an integrated, multi-domain defense solution designed to help protect military forces, critical infrastructure, and public venues against emerging aerial threats.

Sanctum’s modular, scalable architecture leverages Microsoft Azure cloud infrastructure in its digital backbone, enabling rapid innovation, seamless integration with sensors and effectors, and continuous improvement through AI-driven model retraining via the cloud to updateable processing at the edge. The result is faster detection, clearer decision-making, and coordinated action across domains - all designed for rapid adaptation as threats evolve.
 

In today’s contested environments, no single tool wins. Systems that speak the same language - across defenders, domains, and doctrines - create faster decisions and fewer dead ends. Sanctum is interoperable by design: seamlessly integrating across effectors, sensors, and command-and-control systems.

Microsoft’s Azure cloud and AI stack is foundational to the Sanctum ecosystem. Azure provides interoperable, security-focused, hyperscale infrastructure for ingesting, processing, and analyzing sensor data from distributed sites and systems across the country. Key Azure services—such as Azure IoT Hub, Azure Synapse and Azure AI Foundry—support Sanctum’s real-time threat detection, multi-sensor tracking, and advanced analytics. Operators benefit from a unified mission system management experience, underpinned by Azure Monitor, and intuitive user interfaces that surface only what’s mission-critical, reducing cognitive load and empowering rapid, confident action.

“Collaborating with Microsoft brings the best of defense and digital innovation to help our customers respond to emerging threats faster than ever before,” said Paul Lemmo, vice president and general manager at Lockheed Martin. “Together, we fuse world-class defense know-how with industry-leading cloud and AI technologies, giving our customers a decisive edge against evolving drone threats.”
 

At the heart of this collaboration is a shared vision: to equip operators with the tools they need to see clearly, decide confidently, and act quickly. Sanctum is built around the needs of the operator and individuals on the front lines tasked with tracking, identifying, and defending against hostile threats. Through user-centric design, the interface delivers clarity at a glance, fast access to actions, and confidence in high-pressure decisions. Features like real-time map tools, machine learning-powered auto-classification, and advanced threat filtering cut through the noise—helping operators focus on what matters most and act decisively, even under extreme pressure.

In a live exercise, a single operator used Sanctum’s unified console to detect and neutralize multiple hostile drones approaching a base perimeter—reacting in seconds thanks to AI-powered threat classification and intuitive visual cues.

"Protecting civil and military infrastructure requires modern air defense systems that learn, adapt, and operate across platforms at speed,” said John Shewchuk, Technical Fellow and Corporate Vice President, Industry Solutions Engineering at Microsoft. “By co-developing Sanctum with Lockheed Martin on Azure, we’re bringing cloud and AI together from headquarters to the tactical edge—helping operators detect and counter drone threats faster, with more resilient, data-driven decisions."
 

Lockheed Martin and Microsoft’s partnership is defined by rapid iteration, regular capability demonstrations, and a relentless focus on field readiness. The Sanctum C-UAS solution includes integration of advanced effectors, multi-site deployments, and support for both connected and disconnected edge scenarios. With Azure’s DevSecOps pipeline, facilitation of automated over-the-air updates, and proven Software Development Kit for third-party integration, the platform is engineered for agility, resilience, and long-term viability.
 

From defending U.S. military sites and critical infrastructure to supporting large public events and law enforcement, the Sanctum C-UAS solution is poised to address a critical and growing threat now and for the future. Together, Microsoft and Lockheed Martin are advancing a new generation of defense technology—one that learns faster, adapts faster, and helps protect those who protect us.