Global navies are turning to commercial ships to solve the problem of expensive shipbuilding. This shift toward "distributed lethality" complicates targeting and endangers neutral shipping by blurring the line between commerce and combat. We analyze how this strategy is rewriting the rules of naval engagement.

Drones are no longer a niche capability, they are rewriting doctrine, industrial policy, and frontline medicine in real time. From Ukraine’s 20 km deep kill zones to NATO’s new interceptors, China’s tiltrotors, U.S. million-drone plans, and robotic medevac on the zero line, the center of gravity is shifting to cheap, smart, attritable systems and the defenses that counter them. We pulled together this week’s most important stories on how drone warfare is evolving and what it means for anyone building or betting on the future of defense.

This article examines how recent military activity, intelligence investments, and diplomatic messaging reveal a far larger strategic contest. It argues that the United States is deliberately shifting the center of gravity in its rivalry with China from the Western Pacific to its own hemisphere. By doing so, Washington aims to deny its adversaries a foothold in the Americas while forcing Beijing and its partners to compete on terrain that favors the United States.