TL;DRCzech startup Neuron Soundware built Sound Shield, an AI acoustic drone detection system using €100-150 sensors that consume 1W each.
Czech startup Neuron Soundware has built an AI-powered acoustic detection system called Sound Shield that identifies drones by the sound of their engines using microphone sensors that cost between €100 and €150 each. The system is designed as a passive, low-cost alternative to radar for detecting low-flying drones over cities, infrastructure, and military installations. The company, which has spent the past decade using AI to listen to industrial machinery for clients including Airbus, Siemens, and BMW, is now applying the same acoustic analysis technology to airspace defence.
Sound Shield works by deploying small sensors called nEdge Minis, each consuming just 1 watt of power, that listen continuously for drone engine signatures. The sensors report to a computing platform powered by Nvidia’s Jetson modules, which runs neural networks on-device to match incoming audio against a library of known drone acoustic profiles. When the system detects a threat, it alerts a centralised command platform with the drone’s estimated speed, altitude, and direction of movement.
