Emirate conglomerate EDGE Group had perhaps the largest exhibit of any company at IDEX 2025. (Agnes Helou / Breaking Defense)
IDEX 2025 — Emirati defense conglomerate EDGE Group wrapped up an Abu Dhabi defense expo with just under $3 billion in new deals, most signed with the United Arab Emirates.
The firm said in a statement on Friday that it signed 16 contracts, launched 46 “solutions,” and inked 32 strategic international agreements at this edition of International Defense Exhibition and Conference (IDEX) 2025.
Among the largest contracts, at $1.2 billion, was with the UAE’s Ministry of Defense for aerial munitions. Another deal, worth $524 million, was signed between the UAE’s navy and EDGE subsidiary Maestral for in service support.
“This has been a very busy week for EDGE, and the support of our main customer and solid commitments and interest from international customers and partners, highlights the tremendous success we continue to enjoy,” said Hamad Al Marar, EDGE Group Managing Director and CEO, in the statement.
He added that the firm looks forward to the next edition of IDEX in 2027, “where I am confident EDGE will once again surprise the industry with the huge achievements few considered possible five years ago” when EDGE was founded.
During the show, EDGE displayed dozens of platforms in an expansive, central exhibit, from large armored vehicles to UAVs to unmanned ground vehicles, to aerial munitions and small arms.
“While EDGE signed business partnerships to consolidate domestic industrial capabilities in the naval, land, and air sectors, the largest volume of deals revolved around the automation domain,” Leonardo Jacopo Maria Mazzucco, an analyst at Gulf State Analytics, told Breaking Defense.
For instance, EDGE has launched new armored and robotic vehicle at the show dubbed HAVOC RCV and also has signed a contract to integrate MILSAR radars from Turkish Meteksan Defence on its unmanned aerial system Garmoosha.
The firm has also teamed up with US-based GM Defense and integrated its drone launcher on GM Defense’s light tactical vehicle.
American contractor GM Defense and Emirati defense conglomerate EDGE Group have announced a new agreement to explore “light tactical vehicle”-focused projects, in a move that came as the two firms put on display what one such team-up could look like: a G ride boasting an EDGE drone launcher.
He added that “the significant number of agreements signed by EDGE with international weapon manufacturers speaks volumes about the Emirati company’s 360-degree business expansion strategy, securing a strong foothold in the West and Asian defense markets alike.”
EDGE Group signed a large number of agreements to codevelop defense platforms including among others, a memorandum of understanding with Turkish FNSS to update UAE’s armed forces infantry fighting vehicles, a strategic partnership with German HENSOLDT to cooperate in naval technologies and with Brazilian SIATT to supply Brazilian Navy with MANSUP anti-ship missiles.
“For EDGE, the rapid operationalization of business partnerships is vital to the company’s quest to build human capital, strengthen domestic know-how, and generate revenues from sales,” Mazzucco said.
In his opinion Albert Vidal, a research analyst for the London-based thinktank IISS, said that what really deserves attention are “the products that EDGE unveiled, the partnerships announced, and the display of the work done by Advanced Concepts, the Electro-Optics Center of Excellence, and the Radar & EW center.”
