Latest news with #Proteus
Yahoo
17 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Y-mAbs Hosts Virtual Radiopharmaceutical R&D Update Highlighting Clinical Progress and Expanded Pipeline
Company's Part A data readout from first-in-human Phase 1 Trial 1001 in patients with recurrent or refractory metastatic solid tumors known to express GD2, validates GD2-SADA as safe, tolerable and able to achieve targeted in vivo conjugation of 177Lu-DOTA Increased tumor retention and total tumor uptake anticipated by using optimized universal Radiohapten Company plans to initiate a Trial 1001 Bridge study (Part 2A) with optimized Radiohapten, 'Proteus', in 1H 2026 with data readout in 2H 2026; Part B of Trial 1001 anticipated to initiate with Proteus in 1H 2027 with data readout in 2H 2027 Expanded Radiopharmaceutical pipeline to focus on target franchise areas in oncology, with specific programs that maximize pretargeting approach in high-value commercial targets Company to host virtual Radiopharmaceutical R&D update today at 8:00 a.m. ET PRINCETON, N.J., May 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Y-mAbs Therapeutics, Inc. (the 'Company' or 'Y-mAbs') (Nasdaq: YMAB), a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel radiopharmaceuticals, and commercial stage antibody-based therapeutic products for the treatment of cancer, today announced that the Company plans to highlight progress across its Radiopharmaceutical Business Unit during a virtual R&D update to be held today, Wednesday, May 28, 2025 at 8:00 a.m. ET. 'At Y-mAbs, our mission is to deliver innovative therapeutic solutions for life-threatening diseases and improve the lives of patients and their families,' said Michael Rossi, President and Chief Executive Officer. 'We are excited to provide these updates across our Radiopharmaceutical Business today, share data confirming our pretargeted approach has been validated in humans, and reiterate the potential of our platform to deliver novel products that we believe will have a meaningful impact on how we treat certain cancers. Based on today's update, we reaffirm our commitment to accelerating the clinical advancement of our Self-Assembly DisAssembly Pretargeted radioimmunotherapy ('SADA PRIT') technology platform and pipeline.' 'The complete Part A data from Trial 1001 highlighted today provides further validation for our novel SADA PRIT technology platform,' said Natalie Tucker, Radiopharmaceutical Business Unit Head. 'This data from Part A of Trial 1001 adds to the substantial learning we have developed through clinical and preclinical research regarding our SADA PRIT technology. Based on our work, we believe that SADA is a truly differentiated pretargeted platform positioned to potentially disrupt the radiopharmaceutical industry and significantly improve patient outcomes.' Radiopharmaceutical R&D Update Highlights GD2-SADA Phase 1 Clinical Trial (Trial 1001): Part A Completed The primary objective of Trial 1001 is to evaluate the safety and tolerability of GD2-SADA in adult and adolescent patients with recurrent or refractory metastatic solid tumors, including small cell lung cancer, sarcomas, malignant melanomas, and high-risk neuroblastoma. In Part A, the Company first explored variable protein doses of 0.3, 1.0, and 3.0 mg/kg and a pre-targeting interval of two to five days. Of the 22 patients dosed with both the GD2-SADA Protein and 177Lu-DOTA, nine patients had positive GD2 expression, per protocol, and were eligible for the therapeutic stage of the study to receive up to 200 mCi of 177Lu-DOTA. The initial concentration of administered GD2-SADA Protein correlated with the amount of GD2-SADA in serum at the Cmax and over time (AUC). The GD2-SADA Protein PK was highly reproducible within cohorts, and when normalized by dose concentration similar Cmax and clearance rates were observed over time. These results demonstrate that the GD2-SADA Protein clearance rate is reliably correlated to dose concentrations and PK provides a roadmap for tailoring the clearance interval prior to isotope administration. Higher concentrations of 177Lu-DOTA were correlated with higher GD2-SADA Protein concentrations, indicating effective targeting of the 177Lu-DOTA to GD2-SADA. Part A of Trial 1001 demonstrated positive tumor uptake and quantifiable absorbed dose to the tumor at 30 mCi. Both the GD2-SADA and 177Lu-DOTA administrations were generally safe and well-tolerated. No treatment-related serious adverse events occurred across all dosing cohorts and there were no reports of serious treatment-related pain that has been historically associated with dosing of anti-GD2 therapies. SADA Optimization Data The Company completed a number of pre-clinical studies over the last few quarters to evaluate multiple GD2-SADA-177Lu-DOTA molecule constructs for optimizing tumor-to-organ ratios. Results from this extensive work have demonstrated that the 177Lu-DOTA and molecule formulation can be optimized to improve tumor uptake and retention. Accordingly, the Company has chosen to move forward with 'Proteus,' a novel universal radiohapten which has demonstrated the potential to expand access to a range of isotopes with theranostic applications. Y-mAbs is committed to advancing its GD2-SADA program and achieving accelerated validation of Proteus to leverage across its platform and new target programs. The Company plans to file an amendment to its current IND for Trial 1001 to incorporate Proteus for a Bridge study (Part 2A) as part of Trial 1001. The Bridge study aims to assess the safety of Proteus in patients and the impact of mass dose on the therapeutic index. The Company anticipates initiating the Bridge study in the first half of 2026. Following completion of the Bridge study, Y-mAbs anticipates launching the dose escalation portion of Trial 1001, Part B, which is expected to be a Phase 1/2 clinical trial, in the first half of 2027 with data in the second half of 2027. Expanded Radiopharmaceutical Development Pipeline Following a systematic evaluation to identify optimal targets for its novel SADA platform, Y-mAbs has selected lung cancer, women's cancers, and gastrointestinal cancers as target oncology franchise-expanding opportunities. In addition, the Company has established a discovery and pre-IND molecular imaging portfolio, complementary to its planned therapeutic portfolio. The Company anticipates filing an IND for its first molecular imaging asset by the end of 2025. Webcast Information The duration of the virtual Radiopharmaceutical R&D update is expected to be 90 minutes. A live audio webcast of the call will be available on the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at The webcast will be archived for at least 30 days. About Y-mAbs Y-mAbs is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel, radioimmunotherapy and antibody-based therapeutic cancer products. The Company's technologies include its investigational Self-Assembly DisAssembly ('SADA') Pretargeted Radioimmunotherapy Platform ('PRIT') and bispecific antibodies generated using the Y-BiClone platform. The Company's broad and advanced product pipeline includes the anti-GD2 therapy DANYELZA® (naxitamab-gqgk), the first FDA-approved treatment for patients with relapsed or refractory high-risk neuroblastoma in the bone or bone marrow after a partial response, minor response, or stable disease to prior therapy. About GD2-SADA PRITGD2-SADA is a bispecific fusion protein that tightly binds to the glycolipid GD2 and Lutetium 177 (Lu 177)-DOTA, a chelated or 'caged' radionuclide. In the first step of pre-targeted radiotherapy, non-radiolabeled GD2-SADA tetramers are infused and bind to GD2-expressing solid tumors, while unbound GD2-SADA protein disassembles into low molecular weight monomers that are removed by the kidney. The second infusion delivers the 'radioactive payload,' which binds directly to GD2-SADA on tumor cells for localized irradiation. GD2-SADA PRIT with 177Lutetium-DOTA has demonstrated anti-tumor activity in preclinical studies and is currently being investigated in adults and adolescents with GD2-expressing solid tumors in Trial 1001 (NCT05130255). Researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), including Dr. Nai-Kong Cheung, developed the SADA technology for radioimmunotherapy, which is exclusively licensed by MSK to Y-mAbs. Dr. Cheung has intellectual property rights and interests in the technology, and as a result of this licensing arrangement, MSK has institutional financial interests in the technology. Forward-Looking StatementsStatements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects, as well as any other statements regarding matters that are not historical facts, may constitute 'forward-looking statements' within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such statements include, but are not limited to, statements about the clinical development of the Company's Radiopharmaceutical product candidates, including the progress of and results from ongoing clinical trials and the timing of initiation of additional clinical trials; the potential of the Company's SADA technology to disrupt the radiopharmaceutical industry and significantly improve patient outcomes; and the timing of regulatory filings for the Company's product candidates and expectations regarding the expansion of its oncology franchise. Words such as ''anticipate,'' ''believe,'' 'contemplate,' ''continue,'' ''could,'' ''estimate,'' ''expect,'' 'hope,' ''intend,'' ''may,'' ''might,'' ''plan,'' ''potential,'' ''predict,'' ''project,'' ''should,'' ''target,'' 'will,' ''would',' 'guidance,' 'goal,' 'objective,' and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Our product candidates and related technologies are novel approaches to cancer treatment that present significant challenges. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including but not limited to: risks associated with the Company's financial condition and need for additional capital; the risks that actual results of the Company's recent business realignment will not be as expected; risks associated with the Company's development work, including any delays or changes to the timing, cost and success of our product development activities and clinical trials including if we encounter difficulties enrolling patients in our clinical trials; the risks of delay in the timing of the Company's or its partners' regulatory submissions or failure to receive approval of its drug candidates; the risks related to commercializing any approved pharmaceutical product including the rate and degree of market acceptance of product candidates; development of sales and marketing capabilities and risks associated with failure to obtain sufficient reimbursement for products; risks related to the Company's dependence on third parties including for conduct of clinical testing and product manufacture as well as regulatory submissions; the Company's ability to enter into new partnerships or to recognize the anticipated benefits from its existing partnerships; risks related to government regulation; risks associated with protection of the Company's intellectual property rights; risks related to employee matters and managing growth; risks associated with macroeconomic conditions, including the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and Israel and Hamas and sanctions related thereto, international trade policies, including tariffs and trade restrictions, inflation, increased interest rates, uncertain global credit and capital markets and disruptions in banking systems; and other risks and uncertainties affecting the Company including those described in the 'Risk Factors' section included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended March 31, 2025, and future filings and reports by the Company. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. SADA®, SADA PRIT™, DANYELZA® and Y-mAbs® are registered trademarks of Y-mAbs Therapeutics, Inc. CONTACT: Investor Contact: Courtney Dugan VP, Head of Investor Relations cdu@
Business Insider
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Amazon's sprawling warehouse robot factories offer a glimpse into modern US manufacturing
Business Insider recently toured two facilities where Amazon designs and manufactures its robots. Amazon has hundreds of thousands of robots working in its sortation and fulfillment centers. Its facilities give an inside peek at what modern manufacturing looks like. Inside an unassuming office park in North Reading, Massachusetts, Amazon employees are hard at work building robots to support its vast network of fulfillment centers. This facility, along with another about 50 miles away in Westborough, provides a modern view of US manufacturing. President Donald Trump has made his pledge to bring manufacturing back to the US a cornerstone of his administration. But there appears to be a growing appetite for reshoring among company CEOs, a recent annual survey from consulting firm Kearney found. While tariffs and geopolitical tensions provide extra incentive to do so, some obstacles remain, the Kearney analysts wrote. People also aren't necessarily clamoring to work in factories. A poll by the Cato Institute done last year found that while a majority of Americans believed that the US would be better off if more people worked in manufacturing, only a small percentage said they personally want to work on a factory floor. 'A good attitude' and the 'ability to problem solve' The 209,000-square-foot facility in North Reading was previously the home of Kiva Systems before Amazon acquired the mobile robotics company for $775 million in 2012. Elevated platforms look down on an open floor area where robot models named Hercules and Proteus come off a manufacturing line. They have their batteries charged and systems tested, and then file themselves away to be shipped to fulfillment centers in a process Amazon calls a "robot graduation." Both types of robots transport heavy pods of items around Amazon's fulfillment centers, but while Hercules follows a preordained path marked on the floor, Proteus can sense people and humans in its path and make its own decisions about where to go. There are four manufacturing lines in the facility, each with 10 stations. Lights above each station signal green when everything is in place and red when something is wrong. Tye Brady, chief technologist at Amazon Robotics, told Business Insider on a recent visit to the facilities that the company is proud of the fact that it manufactures its robots in Massachusetts. "We know that it can be done and we can do that very efficiently and employ the local workforce," Brady said. A recent Morgan Stanley report estimated that Amazon's investments in robotics could save the company as much as $10 billion a year. Amazon Robotics's facility in Westborough is even larger than the one in North Reading, stretching about 350,000 square feet. In that facility, Amazon workers manufacture robots that can sort, like one called Sequoia that combines several different robotic processes into one storage system. Rows upon rows of cables hang down above containerized robotic storage systems that are testing software updates behind chain-link fences, safely away from human workers. Both the North Reading and Westborough facilities also have corporate offices and research and development labs located directly off the manufacturing floor. Brady said the location is a "competitive advantage" because their engineers and manufacturing employees can work together from the start. "And we've created many, many jobs because of that," he said. Erica McClosky, director of manufacturing and technical operations at Amazon Robotics, said that about 300 people work on the more physical tasks involved in building and maintaining a fleet of robots that's more than 750,000 strong. The majority of workers are assemblers who work on the line itself. Another team is responsible for testing robots before they go out to fulfillment centers and for repairing them when they're experiencing issues. There are also employees who receive and ship out the materials needed to assemble the robots. Amazon sources mechanical parts from local suppliers as well as global ones. These employees typically don't need advanced technical knowledge to do their jobs. "Generally, the requirement for us is a good attitude, ability to problem solve, and be curious," McClosky said. In addition to those employees, about 150 engineers support and assist them. That includes process engineers who work alongside assemblers as they learn how to build a product, as well as test and quality engineers. Technical program managers bring the whole process together. 'There's no doubt that we're seeing jobs change' Brady said Amazon's work is just the beginning of what's possible in "physical AI," a term used to describe the process of bringing AI to robots that can perceive and react to the real world. "When I speak about physical AI, it would be like us talking about the computer in the '50s," he said. "I really foresee the future filled with physical AI systems that enable and augment a person's capability to do their job." He added that the team aims for the robots to be collaborative and always work in concert with humans. The work that happens in Amazon's Massachusetts facilities ultimately plays out in Amazon's sortation and fulfillment centers, where orders are picked, packed, and prepared for delivery. About 75% of the packages that Amazon processes touch at least one of its robotics systems. Julie Mitchell, director of robotic sortation technology at Amazon Robotics, said her design teams get direct feedback from operations teams at fulfillment centers so they know what tasks need to be automated and what may or may not be working. Mitchell and McClosky's overall goal is to optimize manufacturing and design so that robots arriving at a fulfillment center are ready to get to work. "We partner really early on to get their feedback at the very beginning of our designs so that we're always going in the right direction with our technology," Mitchell said. Amazon recently opened a next-generation fulfillment center in Shreveport, Louisiana, with 10 times the number of robots than older fulfillment centers. Brady said that 30% more of the jobs in the Shreveport fulfillment center are more technical in nature than in other locations. "There's no doubt that we're seeing jobs change," Brady said. But rather than have robots replace jobs, Brady said that Amazon is committing significant resources to upskilling its employees. That includes technical apprenticeship programs and paying for some employees' college tuition. "You need both people and machines to work together in order to achieve this task," he said. "If you can blend the best of both worlds — the common sense, the thinking at a higher level, the reasoning, understanding overall building flow, understanding the problems that need to get resolved — and then let the machines do the menial and mundane and repetitive, then you actually have created a more productive system."
Associated Press
15-04-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
GrammaTech Announces Launch of Proteus 4.0
Next-Generation Cybersecurity Tool for Automated Vulnerability Discovery and Remediation ITHACA, NEW YORK / ACCESS Newswire / April 15, 2025 / GrammaTech, a leading provider of application security testing solutions, today announced the official release of Proteus 4.0, a cutting-edge software system designed to automatically detect and repair software vulnerabilities in source code. Purpose-built for development groups, testing organizations, and cybersecurity teams, Proteus combines advanced analysis techniques to improve software security while reducing manual effort and operational costs. With this release, Proteus empowers organizations running both Linux and Windows with seamless, full-platform coverage-bringing unified security and analysis to mixed OS environments in one powerful, integrated 4.0 Automatically detect and repair software vulnerabilities with Proteus Proteus represents a leap forward in cybersecurity automation. By integrating symbolic execution, fuzzing, runtime monitoring, error amplification, and exploitability analysis, Proteus identifies vulnerabilities triggered by malicious inputs-including many listed in the Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE)-and suggests or applies effective remediations. Unlike traditional tools, Proteus works directly on Windows and Linux binaries, eliminating the need for access to source code. 'Cybersecurity teams are overwhelmed while end customers bear 100 times greater cost to fix bugs post deployment, plus the organizational risk of insecure code' said Ray DeMeo, CGO at GrammaTech. 'Proteus offers a smarter, faster, and more efficient way to secure software before it is deployed, supporting both Secure-by-Design and Secure-by-Demand imperatives-especially in mission-critical systems where there's no room for error.' Proteus 4.0 Highlights 'This release marks a major milestone in our vision to redefine what's possible in automated cybersecurity,' said Dan Goodwin, CEO of GrammaTech. 'Proteus 4.0 not only expands platform coverage but sets a new standard for precision, speed, and reliability in vulnerability management.' Proteus is available through multiple deployment models, including on-premises licensing and Software as a Service (SaaS). It has achieved Authorization to Operate (ATO) and supports air-gapped environments, making it an ideal solution for both commercial and government use, including classified settings. About GrammaTech: GrammaTech is a provider of advanced cybersecurity services and leading developer of software-assurance solutions. Our origin story began in the computer science department at Cornell University and now traverses a thirty-five-year company history of delivering cutting-edge cyber capability in support of government, intelligence and mission-critical infrastructure. GrammaTech technology is used by software developers and system defenders alike, everywhere reliability and security are paramount. It covers threat detection and mitigation, malware analysis, machine learning and automation, migration to memory safe languages, attack surface area reduction, and software supply chain integrity. Contact InformationSarah Riggins Project Manager, GrammaTech 301-530-2900 SOURCE: GrammaTech press release
The Guardian
06-04-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Call for expansion of Royal Navy surveillance after Kremlin spy devices found
Britain is 'behind the curve' in tracking Russia's deep sea operations, an ex-minister has said, after spy sensors targeting Royal Navy submarines were found in waters around the UK. Tobias Ellwood, a former defence and Foreign Office minister, called for a huge expansion of the navy's surveillance capability after it was revealed that a number of Kremlin spy devices had been seized by the military. He said the revelation, revealed by the Sunday Times, confirmed that Britain was 'now in a greyzone war with Russia' Vladimir Putin's regime is believed to have been trying to spy on the navy's four Vanguard submarines, which can carry nuclear missiles, with the sensors. The Sunday Times reported that some of the devices had been located by the Royal Navy, while others washed ashore. Their discovery was deemed to be a national security threat, the newspaper reported, and it has not officially been confirmed by the British government. The sensors are part of Putin's expansion of 'greyzone' warfare – a campaign of surveillance and sabotage targeting key infrastructure. Ellwood, who stood down as a Conservative MP last year, described the revelation as 'proof [the UK is] now in a greyzone war with Russia'. He said the use of sensors was 'only half the story', claiming that the Kremlin had established 'remote seabed platforms' off the UK coast that act as recharging stations for dozens of mini-submarines 'to map our undersea cable networks for potential sabotage'. He told the Guardian that government officials were aware of these deep sea Russian bases and that efforts were being made to 'realise that there is a delta between our resilience and the threat that we face'. 'Ninety per cent of our data comes from the sea and 60% of gas comes from Norway by one line so you can see how vulnerable we are,' he said. 'The scale of damage [they could do] is enormous and it's deniable and it's cheap to do. That's the worrying dimension of all of this.' He welcomed the commission of the RFA Proteus, a UK's flagship deep-sea surveillance vessel that was acquired by the Royal Navy in 2023, but said the UK was 'behind the curve in our deterrence and our ability to respond'. The Proteus is 'just one ship and given the threat from this greyzone capability we are going to need half a dozen of these vessels if not more,' he said due to the potentially catastrophic impact of key energy and communication lines being sabotaged. Suspicious incidents in the Baltic have intensified concerns over Russia's 'shadow fleet' and its alleged sabotage activities. The Estlink 2 submarine cable between Finland and Estonia was disconnected from the grid last Christmas Day, little more than a month after two telecommunications cables were severed in Swedish territorial waters. Investigators said the Russian tanker, Eagle S – thought to be part of Putin's so-called 'shadow fleet' – had damaged the Estlink cable by dragging its anchor over it. The Sunday Times quoted a serving British military figure as saying: 'There should be no doubt, there is a war raging in the Atlantic. This is a game of cat and mouse that has continued since the ending of the cold war and is now heating up again.' Another source said: 'It's a bit like the space race. This is a world clouded in secrecy and subterfuge … but there's enough smoke to suggest something is on fire somewhere.' A Ministry of Defence spokesperson described the Sunday Times story as 'speculation' and added: 'National security is the foundation of this government's plan for change, which is why we are committed to enhancing the security of critical offshore infrastructure. 'Our continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent continues to patrol the world's oceans undetected as it has done for 56 years. We are also stepping up our defence spending with an extra £5bn for the defence budget this year, and a commitment to raise our spending to 2.5% of GDP from April 2027 to keep us secure at home and strong abroad.' Luke Pollard, the armed forces minister, told MPs last month that the UK had been 'more proactive' in its response to Russian aggression. But he added: 'It's not always an eye for an eye … In the event of any actions being taken against UK infrastructure, we would look at all the options available to us.'
Telegraph
23-03-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
The former Spitfire factory building Britain's drone army
Britain's longest-running aircraft factory has built it all – from Spitfires and Seafire planes to the Sea King, Lynx and Merlin helicopters. But now a crack team of engineers at the Leonardo facility in Yeovil, Somerset, are working on the next big revolution: a helicopter that flies itself. The Proteus demonstrator drone – believed to be a world-first – is being developed by the company on behalf of the Royal Navy, with test flights expected to take place later this year. It is roughly the size of a transit van but has no cabin. Nor will it be remotely piloted, like other drones used by the military. Instead, Proteus will use a combination of clever computer software with an array of cameras and sensors to autonomously take off, land and carry out its missions. To begin with, this will mean assisting with tracking Russian submarine activity in the North Sea. But the drone's Thunderbird 2-style 'modular mission bay' means it could eventually be used for a wide variety of tasks, both military and civilian, from intelligence-gathering and cargo transportation to even tackling forest fires. 'Proteus will do what we call the 'dull and dangerous' stuff that you don't want to use people for if you can help it,' explains Nigel Colman, managing director of Leonardo Helicopters UK. 'You won't have to put people's lives at risk. You won't have to be limited by food rations or, quite frankly, the size of your bladder. 'It provides mass, reduced cost of ownership and reduced workforce requirements, so it's tackling all those challenges that the Navy faces with crewed aircraft.' Colman was a navigator for the RAF for 30 years, serving in the cockpits of Merlins, Wildcats and Pumas during deployments to the Falklands, Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as Northern Ireland. He is keen to stress that Proteus isn't meant to replace crewed platforms completely, but rather free them up for the most critical jobs. 'Operators could go make a cup of coffee' For example, the first task it has been designed for is anti-submarine warfare in conjunction with Navy ships and helicopters out in the North Sea. This would see o ne or more Proteus drones equipped with 'sonobuoys' – highly sensitive sonar devices that listen for propeller and engine sounds underwater – drop the devices into the water to triangulate an enemy's position. The drones, potentially working with a crewed Merlin, would be capable of processing the data themselves and transmitting it back to a nearby Navy vessel. Onboard software allows them to avoid no-fly zones and oil rigs, identify commercial vessels or fishing boats, and recognise their Navy 'mothership'. They will be able to fly continuously for about 10 hours, according to Leonardo. Rather than remotely controlling them with a joystick, however, forces personnel will instead give the drones instructions – potentially using just a tablet computer – with the machine then plotting its own course and carrying out the tasks independently. This can be tricky work in harsh weather. Among other things, the robot will need to master tasks such as landing on a vessel that is pitching and heaving on the waves. The idea is to reduce the number of hours sailors spend on monotonous, time-consuming tasks. Normally, flying a Merlin helicopter from an aircraft carrier or frigate to drop sonobuoys in a nearby section of ocean can take a human crew several hours – much of which is spent uneventfully cruising over water. In future, it means someone could give Proteus a task and then leave to make themselves a cup of coffee without having to worry about constantly supervising the machine. 'We're designing it to be as autonomous as possible, so the operator really only has to intervene when they really need to,' says Phil Bartlett, head of future programmes at Leonardo UK, a subsidiary of the Italian defence giant. Bartlett's team is the company's equivalent of Q-branch, set up in 2022 to lead the Proteus programme and investigate emerging rotary wing technologies. Their demonstrator is being put together in record time under a new type of government contract designed to speed up innovation. Designs were only finalised in 2023, with the demonstrator drone now almost complete and flight tests due to commence within months. Faster development This is practically warp speed when compared to conventional military programmes. 'If you think about where we've come from, to go from a design to build in not even two years – that's a massive change to how we normally do things,' says Rob Girling, the experimental operations manager. 'These 20-year development programmes, you just can't have them any more. By the time you've finished things are already obsolete. So we've got to move quicker.' Their team is adding to a rich seam of history in Yeovil. The factory – previously known as Westland Helicopters – opened in 1915 under the Petters family and went on to make Sopwith 1½ Strutters and de Havilland 4 and 9 bombers in the First World War. During the Second World War, it was one of several factories to produce Spitfire and Seafire fighters. But since then, Yeovil has emerged as 'the home of British helicopters' producing syndicated designs such as the Dragonfly, the Sea King and the Apache as well as collaborations such as the Puma, Gazelle and Lynx. In the near future, Colman hopes the site – which employs some 3,000 workers – will make Proteus drones along with crewed AW149 battlefield helicopters. Leonardo has put forward the AW149 for the Ministry of Defence's new medium helicopter contract and is now the last bidder standing after Airbus and Sikorsky withdrew. In comparison, Proteus is for now confined to a four-year, £60m demonstrator contract awarded to Leonardo in 2022. But if successful, the aircraft could become part of a new generation of 'attritable' – low-cost and reusable – drones that the Ministry of Defence wants to rush into service, providing desperately needed ballast to Britain's armed forces at a time when Europe is rushing to re-arm. 'You're going to have more exquisite, expensive platforms that you need to protect,' explains Andy Bennett, programme manager at Leonardo. 'Then you'll have attritable platforms, which may be equipped with expensive sensor suites, and at the bottom you'll have your 'disposable' stuff. That's the model the armed forces are shifting towards. 'Proteus will sit somewhere in the attritable space, maybe towards the higher end depending on the payload it's carrying.' As has been shown by the Ukraine conflict, the lack of human occupants in drones is likely to change the way war is waged in future, Bennett says. 'You can take more risks if you're happy to sacrifice the platform, potentially in a high-risk combat environment.' Humanitarian as well as military application Leonardo is aiming to produce Proteus for a 'fraction of the cost' of a manned helicopter. But it also aims to broaden demand for the aircraft by expanding into markets beyond the military, thanks to the ability of the modular mission bay to carry all kinds of payloads. 'On the military side, there's anti-submarine warfare, sonobuoy dispensing, sonobuoy dunking, reconnaissance,' says Girling. 'But you could also expand into different markets, so carrying water to tackle forest fires, for example, or famine relief, deliveries for postal companies; it could be lots of different things.' It is still early days, however. Proteus has only carried out missions for the Royal Navy in a virtual world so far. Upstairs from Bennett's workshop, a team of software engineers run simulations using a 'digital twin' of the aircraft to test its ability to plan missions and carry them out – at least theoretically. On computer screens, they watch an imaginary Proteus drone take off from a virtual Type 23 frigate to drop sonobuoys in the ocean. The simulation is set off the coast of Norway and uses real shipping movements to make the exercise as realistic as possible. Even the bobbing of boats on the water is recreated, along with imaginary winds. If it works, Proteus should mean human crew members will be put at risk far less often. Yet despite the machine's sophistication, Colman believes human pilots will be around for a long time yet. 'I spent my life in the RAF with the pilot and myself sitting in the cockpit, flying around with dozens of troops in the back, in and out of benign and dangerous situations,' he explains. 'When I started, the autopilot was nowhere near as good as it is now, and today we could probably fly airliners without pilots but we choose not to. 'I can't imagine flying troops around without having pilots in the cockpit either. I certainly can't see a moment where we would put 25 people in the back of the aircraft and say, 'I'm going to sit this one out', you know?' It is a question that may seem abstract for now. But as Proteus shows, an army of British drones may be closer than we think.
