A massive American flag stretches wide across the factory wall of Vector Defense Inc. in Bluffdale.

But “Old Glory” is not merely for decoration here.

Instead, the flag is “a reminder of what we’re doing, what we’re serving, and who we’re standing up to serve,” Vector CEO and founder Andy Yakulis told the Deseret News.

“It helps us rally around the concept that the American war fighter needs the most up-to-date technology. And right now, that’s unmanned systems drones. … We’re all very focused on achieving that mission — making sure we’re streamlining the best-in-class technology to the American war fighter.”

The minute-to-minute headlines from combat hot spots such as Ukraine and the Persian Gulf echo an emerging combat reality: Drones are changing the very character of war.

And militarized unmanned aircraft systems are presenting a battlefield paradox. Today’s drones are relatively cheap — but they are also increasingly deadly. Drones are reportedly responsible for 75% of Ukraine war casualties.

As Forbes reported, drones are not merely a new weapon — they are a new era of warfare. “The closest historical analogy may be the tank, introduced during World War I, which broke the murderous stalemate of trench warfare.”

Gov. Cox: Utah’s drone industry can protect service members — and strengthen state’s economy

Now Vector Defense Inc. — and by extension, the Beehive State — are increasingly positioned as key players in accelerating the country’s military-grade drone ecosystem.

On his LinkedIn page, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox recently announced in a video that Utah is “answering the call to build America’s drone industrial base” — while furthering American drone dominance.

The state’s growing drone industry, he noted, “strengthens our economy and supports those who defend our nation.”

National security, said Cox, depends on building critical technology quickly, reliably and at scale — and in a regulatory friendly environment.

Utah’s drone industrial base, he added, prioritizes domestic manufacturing, vertical integration, and rapid delivery to those charged with protecting the country.

“We move fast, cut through red tape, and we support companies that are willing to build here at home,” said Cox. “Government and industry will lead the way — manufacturing in Utah, integrating in Utah, and delivering real capability with speed and discipline.

“That’s how we protect our service members. That’s how we strengthen our economy.”

What’s ‘warfare as a service’?

Protecting America’s men and women in uniform while maximizing their drone capability serve as dual missions for Yakulis and his Vector team.

A West Point grad, Yakulis spent almost two decades in the U.S. Army — including significant duty serving in Special Operations.

The former Army helicopter pilot remembers utilizing military drones such as the Reaper that searches for targets and can be used to shoot missiles similar to an airplane.

“But the drones that are being used now are being used like munitions — a one-way attack,” he said. “People sometimes call them like suicide drones. That was nowhere on our radar when I was in uniform.”

Near the end of his Army tenure, Yakulis recognized a market gap as unmanned drone systems were being used in massive quantities in Ukraine as part of the nation’s ongoing war with Russia.

Simultaneously, the drone tech across Ukraine’s front lines was iterating at lightning speeds.

“And so we saw these two things change which created this revolution of military affairs. More tech being used. More drones being used. And faster iteration on the design of the drones.”

During his Army officer career, Yakulis became well acquainted with the U.S. defense procurement system. It can take several years, he said, to get a piece of technology from R&D to actually be utilized by warfighters in combat.

Given the speedy “tech refresh” pace in Ukraine, America’s legacy procurement system presents “a massive imbalance,” he added.

By launching Vector in 2024, Yakulis set out to create a new model of providing expendable — aka “attritable” — drones to the American military.

But the company does more than simply sell a piece of drone tech hardware. That’s only one component.

“We came up with this idea that I call ‘modern warfare as a service.’”

Vector sells to the military a “service-based contract” that involves training, product and capability development — and the large-scale delivery of unmanned systems.

“But because the military isn’t buying the drone, we don’t have to go through the legacy seven- to 10-year procurement model,” explained Yakulis.

“We can sell you a service today — and underneath that service provide you the best drone that exists on the market today. And then tomorrow, I can provide you with an updated drone underneath that same service contract.”

And while Vector may be headquartered in the southwest end of Salt Lake County, it functions as a global enterprise.

The company has a team stationed in Ukraine, and another in Israel. There, they observe how drone systems are being used — and then bring those insights back to Utah to update their drone training and the designs.

“We have to make a concerted effort to stay up-to-date with how warfare is constantly changing,” said Yakulis.

“That’s why it’s so important for us to have a footprint in war zones — and that’s why it’s so important to have our leadership and a lot of our engineers cycle through those war zones to make sure they understand how technology has evolved.”

What makes Utah the ideal home for drone development?

After separating from active duty military, Yakulis and his associates started the venture-backed Vector. They were eager to begin implementing their fast evolving mission and business model.

But first, Vector needed a home.

Given its density of industry talent, California’s Silicon Valley works “decently well” for software companies, said Yakulis. But it’s hard to build a manufacturing company in the Golden State.

“There’s so many regulatory restrictions on manufacturing in California, and space is just at a premium,” he said. “It’s very, very expensive to do a very large facility like we have here in Bluffdale.”

And there were also Vector’s employees to consider. The Bay Area’s cost of living rate is famously prohibitive.

But business-friendly Utah checked all the boxes, said Yakulis.

“There’s a very supportive culture here in Silicon Slopes,” he added. “And there’s a lot of value-driven, mission-driven individuals that want to work on something that matters.

“Utah’s been very welcoming to us.”

Vector quickly became part of the 47G family — a Utah aerospace and defense industry “ecosystem” of over 200 members and a variety of local academic institutions.

“And the governor,” added Yakulis, “has been incredible to us.”

Beyond its business advantages, Utah is an ideal spot for drone testing and training. “Some of my colleagues or competitors in California have to travel two or two-and-a-half hours just to fly a drone,” said Yakulis.

“We walk right out to the back of our warehouse to fly a drone.”

Meanwhile, Utah military installations such as Camp Williams and those in nearby Dugway allow Vector a venue for long-range or explosives drone testing and training.

“Just having high-density military here — which is our primary customer — and access to training areas has been phenomenal for us,” Yakulis added.

Vector employs almost 100 people, with most working in Utah.

Equipping U.S. warfighters with drone tools and know-how

Integration is a defining term at Vector.

The Ukrainians, explained Yakulis, have proven adroit at integrating with their soldiers on the front line in eastern Ukraine. Obviously, Vector can’t replicate that level of combat fusion.

“So the way that we replicate how fast we are able to iterate for the American military is we do a lot of drone training for them,” he said. “This is how we got our start — as a drone training company.”

Such schooling goes beyond simply teaching a soldier how to fly a drone from Point A to Point B. Soldiers need to know how to optimize this new weapon. So drone tactics and doctrine are being perpetually examined and reinvented.

“The technology is only as good as the tactical application of it — and you will only get the maximum effectiveness out of the tactics if you know how to use your technology,” said Yakulis.

Vector employs “a very, very interesting cohort of individuals” who are experienced tacticians that also understand technology and proper training methods.

Such a training force, said Yakulis, blends prior military personnel who are high-end tactical experts working alongside drone specialists.

Vector’s training seeks to teach American war fighters how to best utilize advanced unmanned systems. “But we’re also learning from our end user to make sure that we are building exactly what they want for the American military,” said Yakulis.

And while it’s essential to understand what, say, the Ukrainian military is doing with drones in the fight against Russia, Vector can’t simply cut-and-paste such data to the American military, he added.

“You have to embed; you have to integrate with the American military with that technology to figure out, ‘How are they going to use it?’ ‘What new feature do they want on that drone?’

“And then, back here in our Bluffdale facility, we build that new feature and provide (American war fighters) on a subsequent version of that service contract.”

Next step: Improving cost-efficient counter-drone tech

Global affairs obviously aren’t pausing for Vector or any others from the nation’s drone industry to develop the latest tech and training.

Even while speaking with the Deseret News, Yakulis was monitoring the day’s events from Operation Epic Fury — the ongoing American war with Iran.

And as with the Ukraine conflict, the U.S. and its allies are dealing with the challenges and tactical opportunities of drone weaponry.

Prior to the current ceasefire in the region, Iran launched “a massive amount of unmanned systems” to attack regional neighbors. Attritable drones are having an exponential impact on the vast Middle East battlefield — and American military leaders have prioritized attacks on Iranian drone platforms.

“I’ve been talking to the company a lot about our country being at war,” said Yakulis. “We need to be on a wartime footing too — and be thinking about how fast we’re building and how fast we’re iterating.”

Developing better and cheaper tech on the counter-drone side are now key priorities for Vector and the rest of the nation’s military/defense industry.

“It’s very hard to defeat what we call ‘attritable drone mass.’ … You can take one drone down, but can you take down 100 or 1,000, especially when decoys come in the mix?

“And can you do that at a price point that makes sense?”

“Unit economics” has become a critical warfare talking point when, say, a $2 million American Patriot missile is being used to shoot down an Iranian Shahed drone made for $35,000.

“The economics just don’t work out,” said Yakulis. “We just don’t have enough Patriot missiles — and/or we will just spend too much money trying to procure too many missiles.

“So we need to do a better job to provide a cost-equal interceptor per drone.”

Utah kept pushing and tied the game 1:45 into the third period with Michael Carcone’s first of the series. Less than five minutes later, Captain Clayton Keller’s goal gave the Mammoth its first lead of the game. Throughout this playoff series, plenty of different players have stepped up in a variety of ways. Having this depth, and plenty of impactful performances, has been a strength of the Mammoth.

“It’s playoff hockey, you kind of expect bigger games from everybody,” Sergachev explained. “And guys are providing, and they’re playing well. (Karel Vejmelka) is standing on his head, saving crazy shots, and facing a lot of traffic in front.”

Brett Howden’s second goal of the night tied the game, 4-4 halfway through the third. After neither team was able to convert in the final nine and a half minutes of the third period, Game 4 went to overtime. Both teams generated multiple chances; however, Shea Theodore’s goal with 52 seconds left in the first overtime period secured the win for Vegas.

“We had lots of good looks early,” Keller said of overtime. “They did too. Lots of back and forth and I think, for a lot of us, it’s probably the first game in overtime we’ve had in the playoffs, and to feel that’s good and it’s experience. It’s only going to help us moving forward.”

As they have done throughout the playoffs and the regular season, Utah will use this experience to their advantage while remaining even-keeled. It’s a best of three series with Game 5 on Wednesday and Game 6 on Friday. The Mammoth have plenty of leaders in their locker room to keep them focused and encouraged moving forward.

“Yeah, that’s something that we’ve worked at all year,” Keller shared. “We’ve gotten better, and this is the time when we need to be even keeled the most, each team is going to have a push, until you rebound and take the other team’s push. I think we’ve done a great job all year, and we’ve got to continue to work at that.”

“There is plenty of hockey left in this series; a tied series going back,” Cole explained. “It’s a three-game series. (We’re) focusing on what we can control and where we stand right now. I think that will do us well.”

Additional Notes from Tonight

• Six of Utah’s 12 forwards recorded over 20 minutes of ice time: Lawson Crouse (28:56), Logan Cooley (27:58), Schmaltz (27:46), Keller (25:40), Dylan Guenther (24:34), and Alexander Kerfoot (21:40). All six of Utah’s defenseman recorded over 20 minutes of playing time. Sergachev led all Mammoth skaters with 30:32 TOI.

• The Mammoth set a new franchise high for hits in a single game with 57. Kailer Yamamoto and MacKenzie Weegar each recorded nine hits, which led the team.

• With three Mammoth defenseman recording points in Game 4, Utah’s blueliners have combined for 11 points (3G, 8A) through the first four games of the series. Sergachev (1G, 2A), Cole (1G), and Sean Durzi (1A) all had points in the loss.

• With three assists in Game 4, Sergachev became the first Mammoth skater to post a three-point game in the playoffs.

Game 5 is on Wednesday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Game 6 is on Friday at the Delta Center. If Game 7 is needed, the series will shift back to Vegas on Sunday.

Upcoming Schedule

• May 3: UTA vs VGK – TBD

One of the largest technology groups in the country backed off from challenging Utah’s age verification requirement for app stores last week.

The Computer & Communication Industry Association withdrew its complaint after confirming the law could not be enforced by government prosecution.

But that was never the main intent of Utah’s first-in-the-nation policy.

The groundbreaking law, which was passed in 2025 and updated in 2026, relies on the threat of private lawsuits to shift corporate behaviors regarding children.

“They’re terrified of the private right of action,” bill sponsor Sen. Todd Weiler, R-Woods Cross, told the Deseret News. “Good fences make good neighbors. I think good potential for liability makes good corporate neighbors.”

Utah’s law orders app stores to verify users’ ages and to request a parent’s consent before a minor can download an app, agree to terms of service or make an in-app purchase.

Parents must be informed of whether the app has an age rating and how it will use their child’s information. Parents of harmed minors may sue app stores for violations.

The principle that minors are unable enter into contracts is respected in most commercial settings, according to Weiler. Starting May 6, 2027, that will also apply to app stores.

Why did Big Tech drop their lawsuit?

Despite CCIA’s lawsuit filed in February, the Utah Legislature didn’t narrow or reverse the law during the 2026 legislative session — they strengthened it.

Lawmakers expanded the App Store Accountability Act to cover pre-installed apps, apps that change to include ads and accounts created before the law goes into effect.

In reaction to CCIA’s lawsuit, they did remove a provision that allowed state agencies to enforce parts of the law under Utah’s deceptive trade practices statute.

The CCIA recognized this change when the updated bill became law in March, but continued to allege constitutional First Amendment violations for another month.

On April 21, the Utah Attorney General’s Office reaffirmed the law does not authorize enforcement by a government entity; it only creates a private right of action.

After suing the state, allegedly over free speech concerns, the industry group, representing Amazon, Apple, Google and Meta, withdrew its complaint the same day.

“With the state’s confirmation that it will not and cannot enforce this statute, the Association’s complaint has achieved its objective,” CCIA President & CEO Matt Schruers told the Deseret News in a statement.

Leading the nation in child protection

Utah’s law, empowering parents to sue Big Tech giants who fail to get parental consent for app downloads, emerged almost entirely intact from the legal battle.

CCIA’s decision to drop its lawsuit before a judge ruled on the law cements Utah’s status as a leader on child-protection policies and signals a national shift, Weiler said.

“It was a victory for the law,” Weiler said. “ I think that the day of reckoning, it’s not coming, it’s already here. And I think that we need to see a lot of reform. We’ve got to do a better job of protecting our kids.”

In 2023, Utah passed landmark legislation forcing social media to verify users’ ages, to give maximum privacy to minors and to remove addictive engagement features.

The law quickly invited litigation from NetChoice, representing Google, Meta and Snapchat, and was enjoined in 2024 while its constitutionality is litigated.

During the legislative session, lawmakers postponed implementation of the App Store Accountability Act from May 2026 to 2027 to see how tech companies respond.

Weiler expects Utah to become the first state with app store age verifications next year after the U.S. Supreme Court upheld similar requirements for porn websites in June.

What’s next for Utah’s law?

But the national legal environment is still far from settled on the question of age verification measure.

In December, CCIA successfully pushed for an injunction on a similar law in Texas as part of a national push to discourage states from pursuing age verification proposals.

Texas has appealed the ruling. It is expected to end up before the United States Supreme Court, which has signaled a desire to balance free speech with child protection.

The Digital Childhood Institute, the Utah-based group behind the App Store Accountability Act, filed an amicus brief in support of the Texas law, which it also helped to craft.

The Texas law, passed a few months after Utah’s, has stricter requirements around age ratings, and tasks the attorney general, instead of private citizens, with holding companies liable.

But, according to the amicus brief, which was filed with the Utah conservative think tank Sutherland Institute, lawsuits against app store age restrictions dodge the main question:

Should apps make contracts with minors without a parent being informed about what their child is agreeing to?

Corinne Johnson, executive director of Utah’s Child First Policy Center, said the fact that more than a dozen other states are following Utah’s lead suggests that the answer is clear.

“Big Tech spent enormous resources trying to kill a law that simply asks them to be accountable to Utah families,” Johnson said in a statement. “They failed. The App Store Accountability Act stands.”