Irish drone delivery startup Manna is establishing a factory in Tulsa that will employ 1,000 people in order to compete with Zipline and Wing.

      Manna Aero, the autonomous drone delivery startup from Ireland, is establishing a US operations and manufacturing hub in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which will create approximately 1,000 jobs over the coming years. Construction is currently in progress, with production anticipated to start within a year. This expansion is supported by the $50 million in venture capital that Manna secured in April.

      The company plans to grow its operations team to between 200 and 300 individuals within the next year, with factory recruitment depending on the speed of growth beyond Tulsa. Manna is exploring six additional US cities and aims to enter them by the end of 2027 if all goes according to plan. CEO Bobby Healy mentioned to TechCrunch that the objective is to establish Manna as a leading US drone delivery service provider, competing with firms like Zipline, Amazon, and Google’s Wing.

      Healy pointed out that the US presents a highly desirable market due to its size, consumer behaviors, and the consolidation by companies like DoorDash and Uber Eats. Manna utilizes autonomous drones that drop packages via a tether instead of landing. The company operates on a hybrid business model, offering delivery-as-a-service that charges per flight and forming partnerships with DoorDash, Deliveroo, and Uber Eats in Europe, along with its own consumer app. The drone delivery sector has transitioned from a novelty to a competitive landscape, with major players like Amazon, Walmart, and Zipline expanding their US operations.

      The decision to move to the US was partly due to dissatisfaction in Ireland, where Manna recently scaled back its drone delivery services, citing insufficient planning regulations for further growth. To facilitate this expansion, Manna appointed former Ryanair CMO Kenny Jacobs as executive chair and president. Healy noted that the Trump administration and the FAA have provided a significant regulatory boost for the industry, prompting many drone startups to focus on the US market as regulatory clarity and increased defense spending create an optimal environment for autonomous flight.

      Manna is not entirely new to the US market; it commenced operations in 2023 in the AllianceTexas Mobility Innovation Zone near Dallas and has since grown into the broader Dallas-Fort Worth area. “We may be a bit behind, but we will catch up quickly,” Healy remarked.