Irish-founded drone delivery company Manna has commenced its first full-scale US operation in Tulsa, Oklahoma, targeting coverage of 90% of the city's population within a year through partnerships with DoorDash, McDonald's and Uber Eats, as it enters what the company describes as the global battleground for scaling autonomous drone delivery.

According to Reuters, Manna will begin flying orders within the next two months and plans to operate from 40 bases across Oklahoma's second most populous city by mid-2027. Each launch site requires no more than the equivalent of four car parking spaces, enabling rapid deployment at low capital expenditure per base.

Kenny Jacobs, executive chairman of Manna and former CEO of Dublin Airport and marketing chief of Ryanair, told Reuters the American southwest would define the future of the sector globally. "This part of the U.S., Oklahoma, Texas, states around here will really be the battleground for scaling up and proving all types of drone delivery globally," he said. "The technology is proven. Now it's about the commercial scalability and showing how quickly you can open up bases and deliver all types of things," he added.

Manna has completed more than 300,000 deliveries, primarily in Ireland, where it recently paused services citing the absence of clear national planning regulations. Jacobs said he anticipated no such regulatory hurdles in the United States.

The company said it would be surprised if it did not expand into at least one additional US city before the end of the year, with other parts of Oklahoma, Texas and Arizona identified as attractive targets. Manna also has plans to enter the UK market by early 2028, with a potential push into the UAE in the Middle East potentially progressing before that.

Manna raised $50 million (€46 million) in Series B funding earlier in 2026 and is competing against established US drone delivery operators including Zipline, Alphabet's Wing and Amazon Prime Air as the sector moves from pilot programmes toward commercial scale across North American cities.

The Tulsa launch marks a significant strategic shift for the company, moving its centre of commercial gravity from its Irish home market toward the United States as regulatory conditions and partner demand create conditions for rapid network expansion across the American southwest.