Layoff
Apr 2023A former employee posted publicly that he was part of a recent group of layoffs at Paladin.
SourceWe deploy autonomous drones to 911 calls. Our software gives first…
Company research
Public company, workplace, funding, and market signals
Overview
Paladin is a Houston-based public safety company building Drone-as-First-Responder (DFR) systems that autonomously dispatch LTE-connected drones to 911 calls and stream real-time aerial/thermal intelligence to first responders. It sells an integrated hardware, software, compliance, training, and support platform for police and fire agencies, centered on Knighthawk/Knighthawk 2.0, Watchtower, and Paladin EXT.
Primary product
Drone-as-First-Responder (DFR) platform for public safety agencies
Founded
2018
Headquarters
Houston, Texas, United States
Team size
40-50
Work style
Flexible
Industry
Public Safety
Sub-industry
Drone-as-First-Responder (DFR) / autonomous public-safety drones
Offices
708 Main St, Houston, Texas 77002, United States
10200 Richmond Ave, Houston, Texas 77082, United States
Mountain View, California, United States
Charlotte, North Carolina, United States
Business model
hardware sales
software/platform subscriptions
implementation and training services
ongoing support and compliance services
government / public-safety contracts
Funding
Stage
Series B
Total raised
$23.6M
Latest round
Venture · Oct 2025
Latest amount
$17M
People & investors
Leadership
CEO & Founder
VP of Sales
VP of Engineering
Head of Product
Head of Revenue Operations and Sales Enablement
Marketing Director
Founders
Cofounder, CTO
Work & culture
Mission-driven, Kaizen-oriented, high-ownership, curious, humble, fast-moving, and very impact-focused. The company emphasizes continuous improvement, hands-on problem solving, and work that directly helps first responders and communities.
Work style
Flexible
Compensation
Public hiring signals show an Account Executive role at $80K-$300K, with remote (US), Houston, and Charlotte locations. Other public postings emphasize mission impact and hands-on work, but do not publish a broad benefits package or standardized compensation bands.
Benefits
Hands-on startup work
Mentorship from senior leadership
Direct mission impact on public safety
Product & market
Pricing
Quote-based public-safety contracts; customized pricing after demo and agency scoping, with hardware, software, implementation, and support bundled as needed.
Differentiators
- —Autonomous dispatch from a dock directly to 911 incidents
- —LTE/cellular connectivity for long-range operations beyond radio-frequency limits
- —End-to-end DFR stack including hardware, software, FAA waiver/compliance support, training, and maintenance
- —Designed specifically for police, fire, EMS, and other public-safety agencies
- —Fast scene awareness metrics and short time-to-eyes-on-scene
- —Integrated command-center workflow rather than standalone drone hardware
Technology
LTE / cellular connectivity
autonomous flight
drone docks
thermal imaging
5G
Watchtower command-center software
ROS / ROS2
WebRTC / RTSP video streaming
Python
C++
Docker
STM32 / ESP32 embedded systems
UART / I2C / SPI
Customers
Ferguson Police Department
Forest Park Police Department
Murrells Inlet Fire Department
Elizabeth Police Department
Burlington, NC Police Department
Memorial Villages Police Department
Competitors
BRINC
Skydio
Flock Safety / Aerodome
DroneSense
Fotokite
Airspace Link
SkyGrid
FlyNex
Scale & contact
Estimated revenue
$1M-$10M
Estimated monthly visits
25.7K
Traffic estimate as of Jun 2026
Signals & risks
Other
Jun 2026North Carolina Business Court filings describe a dispute between Paladin and former VP of Sales Khaled Kadah involving alleged trade-secret misappropriation, investor interference, and efforts to oust CEO Divy Shrivastava.
SourceLatest news
Police1 · Jul 2026
A sponsored article discussing how DFR programs are becoming more practical for agencies of different sizes, and highlighting Paladin’s Knighthawk 2.0 and FAA-compliance support.
Police1 · Jun 2026
Paladin describes its full DFR ecosystem, including hardware, Watchtower software, FAA compliance help, training, maintenance, and support. The piece highlights rapid response, community safety, and broader agency adoption.
Police1 · Feb 2026
Coverage of Paladin’s Knighthawk 2.0 launch, including its NDAA-compliant design, 70-second response time, 40+ minute flight time, LTE connectivity, and international deployment ambitions.
DroneXL · Dec 2025
Reports on a legal dispute involving former VP of Sales Khaled Kadah, alleged fundraising sabotage, and internal leadership conflict at Paladin.
TechCrunch · Oct 2024
TechCrunch reported that Paladin raised a $5.2M seed round led by Gradient Ventures and that its drones were used to support emergency response during Hurricane Helene.
Jobs and careers at Paladin
0 jobs at Paladin
No open positions
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