Amid China's repeated military threats, more people across Taiwan are being drawn into preparations for a possible conflict. DW visits a drone maker that once supplied farmers and is now pivoting to the battlefield.

Taipei City

Small enterprises in Taiwan, such as drone manufacturer Kunwei, have shifted from agricultural technology to developing combat-capable drones as part of a broader national effort to bolster defense capabilities. This transformation comes amid increased Chinese military activity near Taiwan and a significant rise in the island's defense budget, including investment in a new air defense shield.

The Taiwanese government is also preparing civilians by distributing emergency handbooks and encouraging self-reliance in critical industries, such as eliminating foreign-made components from defense equipment. Company leaders and officials emphasize that these measures are aimed at deterrence and self-protection, with the hope of preventing conflict.

Taiwan's small firms pivot to defense production

Designed to fly low over fields and spray fertilizer onto crops like rice and vegetables, engineering machines like this one to help Taiwan's farmers was the original mission of Kunwei, a small drone maker in central Taiwan. Now the company is beginning to use its technology in a far more volatile landscape. Kunwei is developing combat-capable drones to help Taiwan in the case of a Chinese attack. We're not trying to attack anyone. This is about self-protection and self-defense. By doing this, we hope to reduce the chances of war. When you have these technologies, and they can be widely used, an enemy may think twice about attacking. What we want most is to prevent war from happening. Drones like these could be key for Taiwan to defend itself, by patrolling contested airspace or guiding and delivering strikes on hostile forces. We're not able to film everything that's happening here. Some of Kunwei's new defense technologies are already too sensitive to show. For a company that used to make agricultural equipment, that's a major shift. But it's a transformation happening all over Taiwan. Small private enterprises are being asked to support the military as it faces up to a much larger foe. Private enterprises such as this aviation operator, which has begun flying its own reconnaissance missions as Chinese activity intensifies offshore. Taiwan's president recently ordered a massive hike to the defense budget, investing heavily in the so-called TIDO, a new island-wide air defense shield that will consist of both domestically produced weapon systems and others supplied by the U.S. We must rely on strength in order to obtain true peace. Peace cannot be achieved merely through a piece of paper called a peace agreement, nor by yielding to the demands of an aggressor. Taiwan has lots of small companies that are able to move fast and pivot into different sectors. And the government is getting its people ready too. It's distributing emergency handbooks that teach civilians how to act and how to help others in the event of an attack, such as an airstrike. It's quite surprising, yeah. We have to be ready for this. This is what we should be doing. Every country needs to be prepared for this type of situation. Like much of the world, Taiwan knows drones are key to its defense. But many of them contain components made by the very countries it's threatened by. That's why back at Kumwai, David and his team are now working to eliminate Chinese-made parts from their drones, a step toward the self-reliance the government is urging across critical industries. The Taiwanese only have one homeland, says David, and showing both the determination and the capability to defend it, he believes, may help deter war.

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