Orqa

Orqa d.o.o
Company typePrivate
Industry
Founded2018 (2018)
Founders
  • Ivan Jelušić
  • Srđan Kovačević
  • Vlatko Matijević
Headquarters
Osijek
,
Croatia
Key people
  • Srđan Kovačević (CEO)
ProductsUnmanned aerial vehicles First-person view goggles and electronics
Websiteorqafpv.com

Orqa is a manufacturer of drones and first-person view equipment headquartered in Osijek, Croatia.

History

Orqa was founded by the trio Srđan Kovačević, Ivan Jelušić and Vlatko Matijević in late 2018.[1] The company's initial product were the FPV.One goggles, released to the consumer market, intended for piloting drones, and marketed as having better specifications than its competitors.[2] Around the same time, it also began producing drones for racing purposes.[3]

In 2023, Orqa acquired ImmersionRC, a Swiss producer of FPV electronics.[4] During May of the same year, the company was involved in an incident, where its FPV goggles were bricked as a result of a third-party software issue, claimed as a result of either an unpaid license, or ransomware.[5]

In 2024, it received a $5.8 million investment from Lightspeed Venture Partners.[6] It entered into a partnership with Baykar, where the companies plan to integrate Orqa's FPV drones to be carried by Baykar Bayraktar TB2 UAV.[7] It also partnered with DOK-ING in developing manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T) technologies for dual-use applications.[8]

In 2025, it was reported that it was a supplier of drones for the United States Department of Defense, however the purchases from the company were halted after it was discovered that one radio module contained within the drones had been manufactured in China. The CEO stated that the manufacturing of the module had been moved in-house in the meantime.[9] The Croatian army ordered FPV MRM-2 Interceptor drones at a valuation of 10 million euros. The drones were also purchased to be used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.[10]

During the same year, it has expanded its production capacity to 280,000 drones annually at its main production facility in Osijek[11], and subsequently lanched a Global Manufacturing Partnership Program, where it aims to reach a million drones annually in cooperation with its partners around the globe.[12] In January of 2026, it signed a cooperation agreement with the Qatar-based Barzan Holdings.[13]

References

  1. ^ Barišić, Ivana. "Osječki trio stoji iza poznatih naočala za pilote dronova, a ove godine imaju ambiciozan plan. Evo što su nam otkrili iz Orqe". tportal.hr. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
  2. ^ Petric, Dragan. "Orqa: "Napravljene da budu najbolje, naše gogle kreću u osvajanje Amerike"". bug.hr. Bug (magazine). Retrieved 2 January 2026.
  3. ^ Clawson, Trevor. "As European Defense Investment Rises What Role Can Startups Play?". Forbes. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  4. ^ "Swiss ImmersionRC and Croatia's Orqa Merge to Create EU-Based Drone Powerhouse". Total Croatia News.
  5. ^ Lyons, Jessica. "Orqa drone goggles bricked: Time-bomb ransomware or unpaid firmware license". The Register. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
  6. ^ Bergen, Mark. "Lightspeed Backs Croatian Startup Building China-Free Drones". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
  7. ^ "Bayraktar TB2 UAV to Carry FPV Drones Made by Croatian Firm, ORQA". defensemirror.com. Defense Mirror. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
  8. ^ "INTERVIEW - Croatia's Orqa more than doubles drone output capacity, open for JVs". SeeNews. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
  9. ^ Jeans, David. "Silicon Valley's Military Drone Companies Have A Serious 'Made In China' Problem". Forbes. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
  10. ^ Simmonds, Lauren. "How Osijek Company Orqa Became Croatian Military Asset". Total Croatia News. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
  11. ^ Chomsky, Martin. "Croatian company Orqa boosts annual FPV drone output to 280,000 units as it removes reliance on Chinese technology". defence-industry.eu. Defence Industry Europe. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
  12. ^ "Croatia's Orqa Aims For 1M Annual FPV Drones Without Chinese Parts: Ukraine Faces Competition". Defence Express. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
  13. ^ Jodesz, Gavilan. "Croatia's Orqa Signs Drone Production Cooperation Deal With Qatar's Barzan". The Defense Post. Retrieved 21 January 2026.
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