""Pew, pew, pew!" a woman wearing sneakers and high-waisted pink trousers says cheerfully in a video uploaded to TikTok. She is standing on what appears to be an industrial rooftop while demonstrating how to use a black device resembling an oversized laser tag gun. "Jamming gun, good," she adds, flashing a thumbs up. "Contact me!" These days, nearly any product imaginable is available for purchase on TikTok straight from Chinese factories, ranging from industrial chemicals to mystical crystals and custom pilates reformers."
"In recent months, TikTok has become an improbable showroom for a drone economy that powers conflicts like Russia's war in Ukraine. Eager to reach customers however they can, small Chinese drone manufacturers are publicly broadcasting tools of modern warfare, including anti-drone rifles, jammers, and sensors, but presenting them with the breezy cadence of consumer lifestyle advertising. The result is a surreal combination of ecommerce and battlefield combat."
TikTok has become a public marketplace where Chinese manufacturers openly market drone and counter-drone hardware, including anti-drone rifles, jammers, sensors, and tripod-mounted domes. Promotional videos present militarized devices with consumer-style advertising and captions in multiple languages, reaching international buyers. Dozens of videos show devices described as multi-band FPV jammers that disrupt radio and navigation signals used by small drones. Both Russia and Ukraine have raced to expand domestic drone production and strengthen defenses, yet much drone manufacturing and related components continue to depend on Chinese suppliers, enabling a cross-border drone economy tied to ongoing conflicts.
Read at WIRED
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