From NASA Grant to AG3 Labs: Gardner's Journey in Drone Technology

NASA News Releases reported that five years prior, Gavin Gardner was a student of engineering at Michigan State University, conducting research on next-generation drone technology under a NASA grant. Gardner found that while the research itself was demanding, managing the financial aspects of the work presented an even greater challenge. Although Gardner was accustomed to leading students in a laboratory environment, he and his team lacked experience with tasks such as creating budgets, managing substantial funds, and promoting their work through crowdfunding.

NASA's University Student Research Challenge (USRC) is an initiative designed to provide grants to college student teams interested in assisting the agency with its aeronautical research objectives, emphasizing that demonstrating both engineering and entrepreneurial skills are key components of the program. Gardner recently stated that while building the product constitutes half the effort, the other half involves marketing the product in a way that is understandable to others, avoiding overly technical engineering language.

Gardner and his teammates, who are alumni of the Michigan State USRC, continue to utilize lessons learned from the program in their current roles as aerospace developers. In 2024, they established AG3 Labs, a company that focuses on drones for military training exercises. Gardner noted that while he does not diminish their technical proficiency in reaching their current status, he believes the USRC served as a catalyst that significantly accelerated their trajectory at a young age.

Gardner's interest in becoming an engineer originated from a trip to Space Camp when he was in middle school. His brother, Gryson Gardner, also developed an interest in engineering, and the two often worked on various machinery, including drones and electronic kits, in their Michigan garage. Upon attending Michigan State, Gardner sought out extracurricular groups and joined one focused on the increasingly popular hobby of drones, gaining practical knowledge of drone construction and operation.

In 2021, Gardner received an email from an acquaintance who informed him that they had won a USRC grant from NASA for an activity called Aerial Intra-city Delivery Electric Drones (AIDED) and required assistance in building a new drone. Gardner mentioned an idea where a cargo-carrying drone could take off, connect to public transportation like a bus, recharge its batteries while the bus traveled, and then depart for the final delivery leg. The team constructed and tested a full-scale drone to validate this concept but ultimately decided against pursuing a commercial venture due to concerns regarding the numerous regulations involved in operating such a novel concept over densely populated urban areas.

However, the team's demonstration of technical skill and confidence resulted in a second USRC award from NASA in 2023, which was for the Laser Energized Aerial Drone System (LEADS), focusing on using a laser to transfer power directly to a drone while it is in flight. During the work on LEADS, which involved flying a prototype, Gardner's professional network within the drone community expanded to include NASA staff at the Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, who made him aware of internship opportunities that he applied for and was accepted into while pursuing graduate studies.

As his master's degree graduation in the spring of 2025 neared, Gardner took initial steps in late 2024 to co-found AG3 Labs with his brother and other USRC alumni after a friend suggested the military might utilize low-cost drones to test effective counter-drone systems. An initial award from the U.S. Army led to subsequent contracts, enabling the company to expand and increase its operations, with their current production capacity allowing for the construction of thousands of drones monthly. Gardner attributes the opportunities for success for himself and his team to his experience with USRC, particularly in learning about the business aspects of managing a technical operation.