GoPro expands beyond cameras with a growing focus on defence technology

As investor interest continues to shift toward sectors such as artificial intelligence, data centres, energy infrastructure, and defence technology, more companies are attempting to position themselves around these booming industries. Defence startups in particular have attracted enormous attention from both public markets and private investors over the past year, with companies like Anduril recently securing another $5 billion in funding.

Against that backdrop, GoPro is now exploring opportunities beyond its traditional action camera business by increasing its focus on defence and aerospace technology. The move comes at a difficult time for the California-based company, which has struggled in recent years with declining sales, rising losses, and a stock price that has remained near $1 for an extended period. GoPro was once considered one of Silicon Valley’s standout consumer technology companies. During the 2010s, the company became so dominant in the action camera category that nearly every competing product was labelled a “GoPro killer,” much like rivals in other industries were described as “Tesla killers” or “iPhone killers.”

At various points, products ranging from TomTom action cameras to Google Clips were viewed as potential challengers to GoPro’s dominance in the category the company helped create. While GoPro has managed to survive years of competition, survival has not necessarily translated into strong financial performance.

Last month, the company announced plans to “explore defence and aerospace market opportunities,” a move that briefly boosted investor optimism and sent GoPro’s stock price nearly doubling over several days. The strategy does carry some logic. GoPro’s cameras are known for combining high-quality imaging with rugged durability that can withstand extreme conditions, including motorcycle crashes and even high-altitude space environments.

However, the excitement surrounding the company’s defence ambitions did not last long, and the stock later gave back much of those gains. Now, GoPro appears to be taking broader strategic steps. On Thursday, the company announced that it had hired investment bank Houlihan Lokey to help evaluate a possible sale of the business as well as other strategic alternatives.

According to GoPro, its board of directors recently received “several unsolicited inbound strategic inquiries from parties across various sectors, including defence, consumer and financial.”

The announcement suggests the company is actively assessing its future options as it faces mounting financial pressure. This is not the first time GoPro has explored the possibility of a sale. Founder and CEO Nick Woodman acknowledged in 2018 that selling the company had been briefly considered. But the company’s current situation appears significantly more challenging than in past years.

In addition to weakening financial results, GoPro also announced last month that it would lay off approximately 25% of its workforce. The company now employs fewer than 600 people, a major decline from its peak workforce of around 1,500 employees.

The broader shift toward defence-related technology comes as many companies seek new growth opportunities tied to rising government and military spending. A rapidly expanding Pentagon budget and rising global demand for defence technology have made the sector increasingly attractive to businesses looking for new revenue streams.

For GoPro, the move into defence and aerospace may be an attempt to adapt to a changing technology landscape while seeking a more stable long-term path forward. Once viewed as one of the most exciting names in consumer tech, the company is now navigating a far more uncertain environment as it explores whether its technology can gain a stronger foothold beyond consumer action cameras.