SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. (May 18, 2026) — Knightwerx, a defense technology company specializing in unmanned aerial systems and sensor technology, has relocated its headquarters from Camarillo, California, to Scottsdale as it prepares to expand hiring and scale production.

The company develops AI-enabled, dual-use drone and sensor systems for military, defense, and security applications. Its flagship platform, Sandman, is a high-speed, modular autonomous drone system designed for frontline operators, while its Darqmatter technology provides precision atmospheric sensing for applications requiring small size, weight, and power.

Knightwerx founder and CEO Daniel Baumgartner said Arizona’s growing position as a defense technology hub influenced the company’s move.

“I recognized this early on and decided to ensure that the next growth phase of Knightwerx would happen in the great state of Arizona,” Baumgartner said. “We have received incredible support from the Fuse Accelerator community, the Defense Innovation Unit, the local business community, and leading government organizations, such as the Air Force, National Guard, and local law enforcement units since relocating.”

The company currently has 15 employees and has added four workers since moving to Scottsdale in March. Knightwerx plans to hire 15 additional employees over the next 12 months, including engineers, as it moves from research and development toward production.

Knightwerx Chief Operating Officer Erinn Valencich said the company intends to establish a drone manufacturing facility in the Valley in the future, though no site has been selected yet. In the interim, future assembly of the company’s products is expected to take place at its Scottsdale headquarters, with additional production capacity available through partners.

The relocation comes as demand for unmanned aerial systems continues to grow across defense and security markets. Knightwerx said Sandman is designed to provide faster, lighter, and more flexible tactical drone capabilities for operators in the field.

“The drone is really our star product,” Valencich said. “It’s more of a timely product, in the sense that the Department of War is requesting more tactical drones.”

Knightwerx expects to begin production in the fourth quarter and start shipping to select customers in the first quarter of 2027. The company is also raising an $8 million seed round and plans to launch a Series A round later in the year. According to company information, Knightwerx has raised $11 million to date.

Baumgartner founded Knightwerx in 2019 after serving in Swiss special operations. The company said its products were developed around field-based needs, including tactical drone systems and atmospheric sensor technology for defense and aerospace applications.

“Our priorities for the next 12 months are growing the team, moving from research and development into production of our drone and continuing to collaborate with great partners in local law and security forces,” Baumgartner said.

TUCSON, AZ (May 18, 2026) — Motorists began driving on a newly constructed section of Interstate 10 over the weekend as the Arizona Department of Transportation made major progress on the Tucson Freeway Project, a project to widen 3 miles of the freeway southeast of downtown Tucson.

Interstate 10: Kino to Country Club Project map
Map courtesy of ADOT

Traffic was shifted onto 1.3 miles of new concrete pavement from Park Avenue to Country Club Road, marking a milestone in the $600 million project to reconstruct and widen I-10 from Kino Parkway to Alvernon Way.

The project was 40% complete at the time of the traffic shift. Major work completed so far included installing 82 bridge girders at five locations through the project area, constructing abutments for the new Kino Parkway bridge over I-10, and beginning work on a new interchange at Country Club Road.

Along with the traffic shift, ADOT advised motorists to be aware of other changes in the work zone that began Friday night:

The westbound I-10 off-ramp to Park Avenue closed for up to 90 days.

The eastbound I-10 on-ramp at Park Avenue closed for up to 90 days.

The westbound I-10 on-ramp at Palo Verde Road closed permanently.

Work began in June 2025 with the goals of reducing delays and enhancing safety. Major project features included adding a third lane in each direction of I-10 and building two interchanges.

Considered the largest highway construction project in Southern Arizona history, the improvement will:

Widen I-10 to three lanes in each direction between Kino Parkway and Alvernon Way with auxiliary lanes;

Reconstruct the interchange at Kino Parkway;

Construct a new interchange at Country Club Road to provide access for traffic that previously used the Palo Verde Road interchange and allow for safer traffic movements to and from I-10;

Remove the existing interchange at Palo Verde Road;

Construct a new westbound on-ramp at the Alvernon Way interchange; and

Construct an I-10 undercrossing to connect the North and South Kino Sports Complex.

Throughout the project, ADOT will maintain two lanes of travel in each direction on I-10 during peak travel times while maintaining access to businesses. Construction is expected to continue through 2028.

The project was the first to result from a study completed in 2020 that recommended how to best improve mobility along a roughly 10-mile stretch of I-10 from I-19 to Kolb Road. The study also identified an alignment for an extension of State Route 210, also known as Barraza-Aviation Parkway, along Alvernon Way that will connect I-10 to downtown Tucson.

For more information, visit I-10KinotoCountryClub. 

LITCHFIELD PARK, AZ (May 15, 2026) — Dollar Tree has opened a new one million-square-foot distribution center in Litchfield Park, Arizona, outside Phoenix, with outbound deliveries expected to begin next month, the value retailer announced Thursday.

The climate-controlled facility is one of Dollar Tree’s largest distribution centers and will serve approximately 700 stores across Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah. The company now operates 19 distribution centers supporting more than 9,240 stores across North America.

“This facility will help us move product closer to our stores and serve customers more quickly,” said Roxanne Weng, Dollar Tree’s chief supply chain officer, in a news release.

The Litchfield Park facility is part of a broader supply chain initiative, meaning Dollar Tree is investing in the behind-the-scenes system that moves products from manufacturers and warehouses to store shelves. For a retailer, the supply chain includes distribution centers, trucking, inventory systems, warehouse technology, temperature-controlled storage, and delivery timing to stores.

In practical terms, Dollar Tree’s supply chain initiative is designed to make its distribution network faster, more efficient, and more reliable. The company is expanding and modernizing distribution centers, adding temperature-controlled capacity and replacing older warehouse and yard management systems with cloud-based platforms. Those upgrades are intended to improve inventory planning, increase visibility into product movement, reduce out-of-stock items, ease congestion in store back rooms, and strengthen the company’s overall cost structure.

The Arizona facility also reinforces the Phoenix metro area’s growing role as a major logistics and distribution hub for the Southwest. By placing more products closer to stores in Arizona and surrounding states, Dollar Tree can shorten delivery routes, improve store replenishment, and better support regional growth.

Dollar Tree plans to open its next distribution center in Marietta, Oklahoma, in spring 2027, after rebuilding a facility destroyed by a tornado in April 2024. The new Marietta facility is also expected to total one million square feet and serve about 700 Dollar Tree stores in the Southwest and West.