A drone components company in which Donald Trump Jr. holds a stake and an advisory board seat just inked a multimillion-dollar deal with a drone manufacturer the Trump brothers are backing—and the company is openly citing the war Donald Trump launched in Iran to explain the demand. The Trump family stands to profit from a foreign conflict the president himself initiated.
Before markets opened April 21, Unusual Machines [NYSE American: UMAC], a manufacturer of drone components, announced an order worth more than $5 million to supply parts to Powerus, a drone manufacturer.
“The conflict in Iran has highlighted the global need for NDAA-compliant counter-UAS,” the press release quoted Unusual Machines CEO Allan Evans as saying — referring to drone-defense systems that comply with the National Defense Authorization Act. “This is an entirely new market for our U.S.-manufactured parts.” Or, to put it in plain English: the Trump administration’s new foreign policy is good for the Trump family’s new business.
Unusual Machines stock reached its highest price in a month the day after the announcement, up 11.4% from its closing price the day before the announcement. Based on the roughly 332,000 shares Don Jr. disclosed acquiring in November 2024, the price spike would have briefly added about $580,000 to the value of his stake. His current holdings are not publicly disclosed, and there is no public record of whether he sold shares during the spike.
The conflicts of interest in this deal are multifaceted: Donald Trump Jr. joined Unusual Machines’ advisory board just three weeks after his father won the 2024 presidential election, acquiring about 332,000 shares in the company. In October 2025, Evans told Forbes that the advisory board didn’t exist prior to Don Jr. being named to it and that he was selected. He remains a shareholder and advisory board member, the Wall Street Journal reported on March 9, 2026, and was quoted endorsing Unusual Machines in a March 19 press release announcing its $150 million public offering. In March, Powerus announced it was merging with Aureus Greenway Holdings. Once that deal closes this summer, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump will be investors in Powerus, too.
Independent analysts confirm the deal is what moved the stock price. The Motley Fool, citing data from S&P Global Market Intelligence, called the Powerus order “the primary catalyst” for the stock’s rise that week. Investment bank Needham reiterated its “buy” rating and $20 price target following the announcement, according to MarketBeat.
The president’s sons stand to profit when his foreign policy creates demand for products their companies sell to each other. That is not a coincidence. It is the business model: on April 30, Bloomberg reported that Powerus inked a deal with the Air Force.