Taiwan's new drone and defense-autonomy law is being welcomed as a boost for the industry, but there is real worry that shaky yearly budgets could undercut it.

• Taiwan's legislature passed a law to build up homegrown defense and unmanned vehicles, with the economics ministry in charge and the defense ministry handling military purchases.
• The defense ministry is now expected to prioritize buying and using cheap, high-performance drones made in Taiwan.
• Ho Hsin-chun, the DPP's Taichung mayoral candidate, warns the NT$240 billion package may be funded through the regular yearly budget, leaving the industry guessing each year.
• Her point: this year's central budget was supposed to be settled last December but dragged on until August, and that kind of delay scares companies off investing in research and factories.
• Chiang Chi-chen, the KMT candidate, calls the law a cross-party compromise and wants government and business to link drones, robots, and chips into one supply chain.

Outlook: The fight now shifts to how the money is allocated — a multi-year special budget would give drone makers the certainty they say they need, while annual funding keeps them exposed to political gridlock.