Anduril pursues $100B valuation funding round, tripling value in months as defense tech surges

Anduril reportedly in talks to raise funding at $100B valuation, more than 3x last year's mark

Defense tech company Anduril is said to be raising a new round of capital that may push its valuation up by a whopping $40 billion to about $100 billion, Reuters reported, citing anonymous sources. The company, which raised $5 billion in May at a $61 billion valuation -- itself roughly double the $30.5 billion valuation it landed in its June 2025 Series G round -- may be structuring the fundraise as a two-stage process, with the second stage bringing in investors at a higher valuation. Both tranches could be closed within the year, Reuters reported. The news comes as the defense tech industry experiences an unprecedented revival, spurred by demand for drones, autonomous craft, and AI's role in warfare, as war rages both in the Middle East and Eastern Europe. In the first six months of the year, the sector saw venture funding more than double to over $12 billion, eclipsing the nearly $10 billion that startups in the space raised in all of 2025. Anduril has benefited from this demand, signing contracts with the U.S. Department of Defense, Air Force and Army, the Dutch Ministry of Defence, the NATO, the U.K. Defence Ministry, Poland, and more. The company said in May that it had more than doubled its revenue to $2.2 billion in 2025 compared to a year earlier. Other startups have cashed in, too: Military aircraft maker Shield AI in March raised $1.5 billion, Mach Industries quadrupled its valuation to $1.8 billion last month, and Europe's Helsing this month raised $1.8 billion at an $18 billion valuation. A common thread across these deals is a shift toward cheaper, more expendable hardware -- often called "attritable" systems -- rather than the expensive-to-replace equipment that's defined defense contracting for decades. Mach CEO Ethan Thornton has said Mach is designing systems for the current era of warfare at significantly lower cost than traditional defense contractors, citing Ukraine's use of autonomous drones as a model. Separately, both Mach and Anduril have also moved to secure their own propulsion supply. Mach acquired solid rocket motor maker Exquadrum for $50 million in May, while the Pentagon has funded Anduril's efforts to expand domestic solid rocket motor manufacturing capacity -- moves aimed at a supply bottleneck that predates and cuts across the low-cost-weapons trend. Anduril's investors include Thrive Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Founders Fund, ICONIQ, Flux Capital, Greycroft, Altimeter, 1789 Capital, and current U.S. Vice President JD Vance, according to PitchBook. Anduril did not immediately return a request for comment.

Defense tech giant Anduril eyes new funding at $100B valuation as Seattle expansion draws protests

Defense tech giant Anduril, which is rapidly expanding its operations in the Seattle area, is looking to raise a new round of capital that could value the company at about $100 billion, reports Reuters. That would give the privately-held startup a bigger valuation than Northrop Grumman, the 87-year-old defense company which is currently valued at $77 billion. Boeing's market value stands at $165 billion, while Lockheed Martin is valued at $134 billion. Founded in 2017, Anduril is led by the Hawaiian-shirt and cargo-shorts wearing Palmer Luckey, the 33-year-old creator of Oculus VR, whom the New York Times described as the "It Guy of the booming defense-technology industry." In May, the Costa Mesa, Calif.-based company raised a $5 billion series H funding round -- including investments from Thrive Capital and Andreessen Horowitz -- that valued Anduril at $61 billion. Anduril is rapidly expanding in the Seattle area, with offices in downtown Seattle and Bellevue where the company is working on a range of defense technologies, including its Lattice command and control software. That platform is described as an "AI-powered battle management platform built to accelerate complex kill chains." It also recently established operations at the historic Foss Maritime shipyard along the southern bank of the Lake Washington Ship Canal, where the company is developing autonomous naval vessels and other maritime technologies. The company's expansion in Washington state is not without controversy. Last weekend, protesters handed out flyers outside the company's downtown Seattle offices that said: "Anduril Out! No AI for War and Plunder!" Anduril said it recognizes the right to protest, while defending its work supporting the U.S. military and service members. "We respect the right to free speech and we understand that protests are a hallmark of democratic expression," Anduril said in a statement provided to GeekWire. "That said, it is perplexing when people choose to protest a company dedicated to supporting the very military that safeguards those rights." Earlier this week, Anduril announced a new program called Thunder, an autonomous attack rotorcraft that it said is "designed to multiply the combat power and increase the survivability of current and next-generation crewed attack and assault aircraft." The size of the potential funding round hasn't been determined and the terms are still in flux, Reuters reported, citing two people familiar with the matter. One structure under discussion would have investors commit upfront to a second financing within a year at a higher valuation, contingent on Anduril hitting certain financial targets.