Axon, a prominent technology company, was founded by Rick Smith in 1993 in Scottsdale as Taser International and subsequently became Axon Enterprises, Inc. They produce equipment for Law Enforcement, Corrections, Federal Agencies, and the US Military — including tasers, body-worn cameras, cloud-based software, drones, and virtual reality (VR) training. 2024 Total Revenue = $2.1 Billion. March 2025 Market Capitalization = $40 Billion
Axon’s Proposed Apartment Complex
In August 2023, Axon proposed a new headquarters for its company and a 2,500-unit apartment complex—primarily for Axon employees but not exclusively. The proposed apartment complex was revised to 1,975 units during a planning commission meeting on January 24th, 2024, and amended the following month to 1,900 units. And finally, the lame-duck Scottsdale City Council members approved the 1,900-unit project on November 19th, 2024, a mere 57 days before the new councilmembers and mayor started their terms, creating a new conservative supermajority within the Scottsdale City Council.
In response to the apartment complex being rushed through, a community action group called Taxpayers Against Awful Apartment Zoning Exemptions (TAAAZE) was formed to fight against Axon’s apartment complex. More than required, they gathered over 26,000 Scottsdale signatures in December 2024 for a Referendum allowing voters to decide whether to approve the 1,900-unit apartment complex, which was certified for the November 2026 ballot… read more >