Smart Shooter has secured a NIS 6.7 million agreement with Israel's Defense Ministry to supply its SMASH Hopper lightweight remote‑controlled weapon stations to counter the drone threat plaguing the country’s northern border.
The deal covers delivery of systems, spare parts, and related services during the second half of 2026. The ministry also holds options such as the procurement of similar systems and additional services worth an additional NIS 7.9 million, which could bring the total value to about NIS 14.6 million, if fully exercised.
Weighing some 15 kilograms, the SMASH Hopper is a compact and easily deployable system designed for deployment on light vehicles, robots, fixed posts, and other mobile or stationary platforms.
Like other systems manufactured by Smart Shooter, it features a safe trigger mechanism and offers day and night capability with automatic scanning and target detection. The system can be controlled by operators at a safe distance from the threat.
SMASH Hopper can be used for multiple mission scenarios, such as force protection, border security, anti-drone, and remote ambush, as well as low-profile operations at complex urban environments or sensitive facilities where rapid response is required.
The system is built to counter both ground and aerial threats, including small drones -- a capability that has become increasingly central to IDF and global defense requirements.
'Keeping soldiers at a safe distance'
On Saturday, IDF officer Cpt. Maoz Israel Recanati was killed in a Hezbollah drone attack in southern Lebanon. Despite a ceasefire between the two countries, the Lebanese terror group is increasingly using small, highly maneuverable fiber-optic drones along Israel’s northern border, targeting IDF troops and civilians.
Smart Shooter CEO Michal Mor said the agreement reflects the ministry's continued confidence in the company’s technology. As drones and other battlefield challenges proliferate, Mor noted that the system addresses the “urgent” defense needs of the country.
“The remotely controlled SMASH HOPPER system enables forces to engage ground and aerial threats with high precision, while keeping soldiers at a safe distance. As drones and other rapidly evolving battlefield threats continue to challenge forces worldwide, SMASH systems are proving to be an effective operational solution for precise, controlled engagement of both ground and aerial threats,” she said.
Smart Shooter describes itself as a software‑ and algorithm‑driven company, which, it argues, gives it an advantage in responding to new threats. And while it can continuously upgrade its software to handle new threats, the core technology remains consistent across platforms.
Accuracy while moving
Smart Shooter systems are designed to help soldiers intercept drones by stabilizing their aim and tracking a moving target even under stress. The technology is optic‑based: A camera and sensor feed continuous imagery into an onboard computer, which analyzes the scene in real time. The system identifies the designated target, locks onto it, and calculates where the shooter needs to aim as the target moves. The operator presses a button to lock on, pulls the trigger, and aligns the weapon within the firing window that the system displays.
This approach allows troops to maintain accuracy even when they are moving, fatigued, or under fire. The system is also part of a soldier’s personal gear, rather than a separate platform, allowing troops to respond quickly, without relying on additional equipment.
This combination of simple hardware and advanced image-processing software effectively turns troops, even reservists with no training, into sharpshooters, with the first round out of every rifle hitting its target.
Smart Shooter’s technology is already deployed by forces in the United States, Israel, the United Kingdom, Germany, NATO member states, and other allied nations. The Israeli contract follows a $10.7 million US Army award last week for the company’s SMASH 3000SA rifle‑mounted fire‑control systems.
Headquartered in Kibbutz Yagur, the company operates subsidiaries in the US, Germany, and Australia.