In the middle of March, as the war raged between Iran, Israel, and the United States, it was reported the Trump brothers, Donald Jr. and Eric, were positioned to make a deal with the Pentagon. American Ventures, a venture capital firm, holds stakes in three crucial defense companies—Powerus, Xtend, and Unusual Machines, and all three manufacture military drones. American Ventures backs Powerus, a Florida-based startup advancing drone technology with a focus on West Asia. Xtend, an "AI-powered platform" designed for "mission critical operations," is an Israeli company. Unusual Machines, based in Orlando, Florida, is partnered with Powerus to manufacture "counter-UAS Systems."

"Donald Trump's sons are making a bold business move tied to the expanding military drone market, positioning themselves to potentially profit from defense spending during their father's administration," BallerAlert reported.

Bloomberg put an approximate dollar figure on the American Ventures investment portfolio: nearly $750 million across the three Florida-based companies, all of which are pursuing Defense Department contracts under the Pentagon's Drone Dominance initiative, which targets $1.1 billion in drone procurement over the next two years, according to DroneXL, a news site reporting on drone technology. The Drone Dominance initiative plans to purchase over 200,000 drones by early 2028.

"Co-founded by former U.S. Army Special Operations veterans, Powerus builds autonomous drone systems for military and commercial use," The Hill reported on March 10, 2026. Brett Velicovich, a former US Army intelligence and special operations soldier, is president and COO of Powerus. Velicovich served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and was an Army special operations intelligence analyst and former Delta Force. The combat veteran was once regarded as the "world's most dangerous drone expert." During an interview, he declared he knows, as a victim of an attack in Iraq attributed to Iran, the "evil of the Iranian regime all too well." More likely, the Shia resistance to the US occupation of Iraq was responsible. Velicovich is credited with helping to track down and assassinate the leader of the Islamic State, Abu Omar al-Baghdad. He also helped track Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, who was assassinated by the Trump administration while visiting Baghdad on a peace mission.

Appearing on the Mark Levin Show, Velicovich said if he was "advising the President, I would tell him now is not the time to let up" on bombing Iran. "President Trump is doing right now exactly what a commander-in-chief is supposed to do," Velicovich told Levin. "He arrogantly claims diplomacy is surrender and brags the Trump administration is intentionally forcing a battlefield confrontation," according to an X post. "At no point does Levin disclose that Velicovich may stand to profit off the war expanding," posted Chris Menahan of Information Liberation.