Tonbo Imaging has been awarded a contract by the Indian Navy under the ADITI 3.0 innovation framework to integrate and commission a High-Power Microwave (HPM) system for naval platforms.
The programme is supported by iDEX and the Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO) under the Ministry of Defence, Government of India. Under the scope of the engagement, Tonbo Imaging will undertake system integration and commissioning activities, followed by supplying multiple production units upon successful development, validation, and acceptance.
High Power Microwave systems provide a directed-energy, non-kinetic capability designed to disrupt or degrade adversary electronics, sensors, and unmanned systems. The technology is increasingly relevant in countering drone swarm threats and asymmetric maritime challenges, contributing to electromagnetic spectrum-based and next-generation deterrence.
ADITI (Advanced Defence Technology Incubation) is a Government of India initiative aimed at enabling the development, integration, and validation of advanced defence technologies before induction. The selection of Tonbo Imaging under ADITI 3.0 reflects the emphasis on indigenous capability development aligned with Indian Navy operational requirements and modernisation priorities.
Commenting on the development, Arvind Lakshmikumar, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Tonbo Imaging India Limited, stated:
“This programme represents a significant responsibility to execute complex capability integration with discipline, rigour, and clear alignment to end-user operational needs. Over the past several years, Tonbo Imaging has invested substantially in the indigenous development of core building blocks of High-Power Microwave technology, including critical sub-systems and vacuum tube sources. We are among the very few private organisations to own core intellectual property in vacuum tube technologies that are fundamental to HPM systems, and this deep technology foundation has been a key factor in our selection for this naval programme.
For the class of effects required in High Power Microwave applications, vacuum tube–based sources remain the practical path forward, as they can generate the extremely high peak power and energy levels necessary for effective target coupling. Solid-state RF sources, while well suited for many RF applications, cannot today achieve the required peak power and pulse energy levels within feasible size, weight, and efficiency envelopes for operational HPM systems.”
With this engagement, Tonbo Imaging expands its role beyond its established electro-optics foundation into advanced defence system integration. The programme reinforces its involvement in system-level integration, embedded systems, advanced electronics, and emerging directed-energy and mission systems. This evolution reflects the company’s transition toward fully integrated, mission-critical defence capabilities.
