What are the fundraising trends in the defense tech market?
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In our defense tech market deck, you will find everything you need to understand the market
Between 2022 and 2025, defense tech startups raised a combined $16.8 billion across 151 equity deals worldwide.
The defense tech market went from a niche venture category to one of the fastest-growing sectors in global tech investing, more than tripling annual funding over just four years.
This growth was driven by geopolitical urgency (Ukraine, the Middle East, the South China Sea), a wave of new investors entering the space, and a handful of breakout companies proving that startups can compete with legacy defense contractors.
And if you want to better understand this new industry, you can download our pitch covering the defense tech market.
Insights
- Defense tech funding grew 3.2x from $2.7B in 2022 to $8.7B in 2025, making it one of the fastest-growing venture capital categories globally during a period when overall VC funding declined.
- Anduril alone captured roughly one-third of all defense tech funding over four years, raising $5.5B across three mega-rounds, highlighting extreme concentration in the defense tech market.
- Even stripping out the top two deals each year, defense tech funding still grew 5.3x from $1.0B in 2022 to $5.5B in 2025, proving the growth was broad-based.
- Counter-drone technology went from a small niche in 2022 to a $1.7B+ category by 2025, directly fueled by battlefield lessons from the Ukraine and Gaza conflicts.
- European defense tech startups raised less than $200M in 2022 but exceeded $1.5B in 2025, with Germany emerging as the continent's undisputed defense tech hub.
- The number of defense tech unicorns jumped from roughly 2 in 2022 (Anduril and Shield AI) to at least 12 by the end of 2025, including Saronic, Helsing, CHAOS Industries, and Onebrief.
- Andreessen Horowitz participated in 18 defense tech deals across 2022 to 2025, more than any other investor in the defense tech market, spanning drones, autonomous ships, missiles, and software.
- Q4 consistently dominates defense tech deal flow, accounting for 45% to 60% of annual funding in most years, suggesting year-end budget cycles influence venture timing.
- The median defense tech deal stayed around $30 to $39M across all four years, even as mega-rounds pushed the average up to $152M in 2025.
- Israeli defense tech had its breakout year in 2025, with eight companies raising $360M+, catalyzed by the post-October 7 security environment and combat-tested technology.
First, how do we define the defense tech market?
We define the defense tech market as product and platform technologies built to deliver military or national-security mission capabilities and sold into defense, intelligence, or closely related national-security buyers.
We include autonomy/robotics, C2 and mission software, ISR and sensing, resilient communications, cyber capabilities, space security technologies, and other mission systems where defense or national-security is a primary go-to-market.
We exclude general government IT services, generic enterprise software/security with no mission focus, purely commercial aerospace/industrial tech without a defense go-to-market, and public-safety tools that are not primarily defense or national-security mission oriented.
This is also the definition we use in our pitch about the defense tech market.
In our defense tech market deck, we have designed useful charts to give you full market clarity
How has funding activity in the defense tech market changed over time?
2025 was by far the most active year in defense tech history, with $8.7B raised across 57 deals, though Anduril's $2.5B Series G and Helsing's $648M Series D accounted for a big chunk of that total.
2023 was the least active year by dollar volume at $1.65B, as the broader venture capital market contracted sharply, even though the number of defense tech deals actually rose to 33 from 21 in 2022.
Compared to 2025, defense tech funding was 134% higher than in 2024 ($3.7B), 426% higher than in 2023 ($1.65B), and 219% higher than in 2022 ($2.7B).
If you strip out the top two mega-deals from each year, the underlying defense tech market still grew from about $1.0B in 2022 to $5.5B in 2025, a 5.3x increase that confirms the growth was broad-based and not just driven by one or two outlier rounds.
If you're interested in this industry, please note that we regularly keep in touch and share funding updates for this market on this page, which we keep continuously updated.
We also make quarterly analyses of the funding activity in the defense tech market here.
| Year | Number of deals | Total raised | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 21 | $2.7B | Russia's invasion of Ukraine catalyzed defense tech venture capital. Anduril's $1.48B Series E alone accounted for 54% of total funding that year. |
| 2023 | 33 | $1.65B | Deal count rose but total capital dropped 40% as the broader VC market contracted. Shield AI's $300M Series F was the largest defense tech round of the year. |
| 2024 | 40 | $3.7B | Funding more than doubled from 2023 as institutional investors poured into the defense tech market. Anduril's $1.5B Series F and Helsing's $487M Series C led the rebound. |
| 2025 | 57 | $8.7B | A record year by every measure, with 57 deals and $8.7B raised. Ten new defense tech unicorns emerged, and European startups raised more than $1.5B for the first time. |
In our defense tech market deck, we help you understand how the market is structured
Which startups in the defense tech market raised the largest rounds over the last few years?
These startups raised the most over the last years in the defense tech market:
- Anduril raised $2.5B in its Series G (June 2025) to build Arsenal-1, a hyperscale autonomous weapons factory, at a $30.5B valuation.
- Anduril raised $1.5B in its Series F (August 2024) at a $14B valuation to mass-produce autonomous defense systems across new facilities.
- Anduril raised $1.48B in its Series E (December 2022), the fourth-largest US startup round of 2022, driven by surging counter-drone demand after Ukraine.
- Helsing raised $648M in its Series D (June 2025), led by Spotify founder Daniel Ek's fund, making Helsing Europe's most valuable defense AI company.
- Saronic raised $600M in its Series C (February 2025) to build an autonomous shipyard and mass-produce unmanned warships for the US Navy.
- CHAOS Industries raised $510M in its Series D (November 2025) to scale its counter-drone radar technology across military and border security applications.
- Helsing raised $487M in its Series C (July 2024) to expand AI capabilities across NATO's Eastern Flank with Saab as a strategic investor.
- Castelion raised $350M in its Series B (December 2025) to mass-produce affordable hypersonic missiles at a new facility in New Mexico.
- Shield AI raised $300M in its Series F (October 2023), the largest defense tech round of that year, to scale its Hivemind AI pilot for autonomous aircraft.
- Divergent Technologies raised $290M in its Series E (September 2025) to expand its AI-powered advanced manufacturing system for aerospace and defense parts.
And, yes, we do cover most of them in our our beautiful pitch about the defense tech market.
In our defense tech market deck, we answer all the common questions from investors and entrepreneurs
Is the defense tech market shifting toward smaller or bigger deals?
According to our own data, the average deal size across the defense tech market from 2022 to 2025 was approximately $111M, though this number is heavily skewed by a handful of billion-dollar mega-rounds.
Year by year, the average defense tech deal was $130M in 2022, dropped to $50M in 2023, recovered to $93M in 2024, then jumped to $153M in 2025. The 2022 and 2025 figures are inflated by Anduril's mega-rounds, while 2023 reflects a more typical funding environment without any single deal above $300M.
If you exclude the top two outlier deals from each year, the average defense tech deal has actually been relatively stable in the $35M to $45M range from 2022 to 2024, then climbed meaningfully to around $100M in 2025, suggesting that mid-market defense tech companies also attracted significantly larger rounds.
| Year | Number of deals | Avg. deal size | Deals below $2M | Deals above $50M |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 21 | $130M | 0 | 10 |
| 2023 | 33 | $50M | 1 | 14 |
| 2024 | 40 | $93M | 4 | 14 |
| 2025 | 57 | $153M | 3 | 26 |
| All years | 151 | $111M | 8 | 64 |
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How concentrated was funding activity in the defense tech market?
Defense tech funding is one of the most concentrated sectors in all of venture capital. Across all four years, the single largest company (Anduril) captured 33% of total defense tech investment, and the top three companies (Anduril, Helsing, CHAOS Industries) captured 46%.
The good news is that defense tech funding concentration has been declining steadily, from the top company capturing 54% in 2022 down to 29% in 2025, as more startups scaled to growth stage and attracted large rounds of their own.
| Year | Number of deals | % by Top 1 | % by Top 3 | % by Top 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 21 | 54.3% | 69.0% | 95.9% |
| 2023 | 33 | 18.2% | 45.6% | 82.3% |
| 2024 | 40 | 40.4% | 58.3% | 86.8% |
| 2025 | 57 | 28.8% | 48.9% | 75.3% |
| All years | 151 | 32.7% | 46.3% | 68.5% |
In our defense tech market deck, we track adoption trends and shifts in consumer behavior
Which categories in the defense tech market received the most funding?
Autonomous systems and military robotics was by far the largest category in the defense tech market, capturing roughly $9.5B (57% of total funding) across about 50 deals from 2022 to 2025. This dominance reflects a fundamental investor bet that future warfare will rely on unmanned platforms across air, sea, and ground, with Anduril, Shield AI, Saronic, Skydio, and Quantum Systems leading the charge.
Defense AI and mission software came second with approximately $2.3B across 18 deals, driven almost entirely by Helsing's meteoric rise in Europe ($1.36B total) and the emergence of pure-play military planning tools like Onebrief ($323M total). Investors are betting that AI-powered decision-making and C2 software will become as important as the hardware itself.
Counter-drone and directed energy ranked third with roughly $1.7B across 15 deals, fueled by lessons from Ukraine where cheap drones changed warfare. CHAOS Industries ($930M) and Epirus ($450M) captured the bulk of this category, while newer entrants like Cambridge Aerospace ($130M) are building interceptor missiles for European air defense.
| Category | Number of deals | Total raised | Startups and amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autonomous systems and military robotics | ~50 | ~$9.5B | Anduril ($5,480M), Saronic ($830M), Shield AI ($765M), Skydio ($400M), Quantum Systems ($474M), Forterra ($263M), Auterion ($210M), Tekever ($171M), Hermeus ($140M), Heven AeroTech ($100M), and others |
| Defense AI and mission software | ~18 | ~$2.3B | Helsing ($1,358M), Onebrief ($323M), Defense Unicorns ($136M), Kela Technologies ($99M), Parry Labs ($80M), Vannevar Labs ($75M), Second Front Systems ($72M), DEFCON AI ($44M), and others |
| Counter-drone and directed energy | ~15 | ~$1.7B | CHAOS Industries ($930M), Epirus ($450M), Cambridge Aerospace ($130M), Fortem Technologies ($66M), DroneShield ($40M), D-Fend Solutions ($31M), Allen Control Systems ($30M), and others |
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Who are the biggest investors in the defense tech market?
Andreessen Horowitz is the most active investor in the defense tech market by deal count, with 18 deals across 2022 to 2025 spanning everything from Anduril and Shield AI to Saronic and Castelion. Andreessen Horowitz's American Dynamism fund has made defense tech a core thesis, and the firm has participated in more mega-rounds than any other venture investor.
8VC ranks second with 13 deals, anchored by repeated bets on Anduril, CHAOS Industries, Saronic, and Epirus. 8VC co-founded by Joe Lonsdale has been among the earliest believers in defense tech as a venture category.
Founders Fund also participated in 13 deals, including leading Anduril's $2.5B Series G with a $1B check, the largest single investment in defense tech history. Founders Fund's Trae Stephens co-founded Anduril and the firm has been the sector's most prominent backer since the beginning.
General Catalyst has been involved in 11 defense tech deals, notably leading Helsing's Series B and Series C in Europe while also backing Saronic, Onebrief, and Castelion in the US. General Catalyst's cross-Atlantic approach makes it one of the few major VCs active in both US and European defense tech.
Lockheed Martin Ventures and the NATO Innovation Fund stand out as the most active strategic and government-backed investors, with 9 and 8 deals respectively. Lockheed Martin Ventures invested across the spectrum from counter-drones (Fortem Technologies) to space (Slingshot Aerospace), while the NATO Innovation Fund focused on European defense tech startups like ARX Robotics, Tekever, and Stark Defence.
Lux Capital participated in 7 deals, including co-leading Hadrian's rounds and backing emerging companies like Kela Technologies and Cambridge Aerospace. Accel entered the defense tech market in 2024 and quickly built a portfolio of 6 deals, including leading CHAOS Industries' mega-rounds and participating in Helsing and True Anomaly.
Disclaimer: this investor list may be incomplete; we focus on publicly disclosed lead and prominent recurring investors, so some frequent minority participants may be underrepresented. "Total funded" does not represent the amount personally invested by an individual investor. Instead, it refers to the aggregate amount raised across all fundraising rounds in which the investor participated.
| Investor | Number of deals | Total funded | Startups |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andreessen Horowitz | 18 | $8.5B | Anduril (2022, 2024, 2025), Shield AI (2022, 2025), Hadrian (2022, 2025), Skydio (2023, 2024), Saronic (2023, 2024, 2025), Castelion (2023, 2025), Mach Industries (2023), Astranis (2024), Pryzm (2025), True Anomaly (2025) |
| 8VC | 13 | $7.8B | Anduril (2022, 2024, 2025), Epirus (2022, 2025), Second Front Systems (2022), Saronic (2023, 2024, 2025), CHAOS Industries (2024, 2025), Stark Defence (2025) |
| Founders Fund | 13 | $6.8B | Anduril (2022, 2024, 2025), Hermeus (2022), Gecko Robotics (2022, 2023), Hadrian (2022, 2025), Impulse Space (2022), Mach Industries (2023), Castelion (2025) |
| General Catalyst | 11 | $4.2B | Anduril (2022), Helsing (2023, 2024, 2025), Vannevar Labs (2023), Jeh Aerospace (2024), Saronic (2025), Onebrief (2025), Castelion (2025), ICEYE (2025), Alpine Eagle (2025) |
| Lightspeed Venture Partners | 9 | $3.5B | Anduril (2022), Saronic (2023, 2025), Helsing (2024, 2025), Castelion (2025) |
| Lockheed Martin Ventures | 9 | $328M | Fortem Technologies (2022), Slingshot Aerospace (2022, 2022), HawkEye 360 (2023), Satellite Vu (2023), Red 6 (2023), Firestorm Labs (2024), VATN Systems (2025) |
| NATO Innovation Fund | 8 | $331M | ARX Robotics (2024, 2025), Isar Aerospace (2024), Tekever (2024, 2025), Aquark Technologies (2024), Stark Defence (2025) |
| Lux Capital | 7 | $2.1B | Anduril (2022), Hadrian (2022, 2025), Impulse Space (2022), Kela Technologies (2025), Cambridge Aerospace (2025), Theseus (2025) |
| Accel | 6 | $2.2B | Helsing (2024, 2025), CHAOS Industries (2024, 2025), True Anomaly (2025), Cambridge Aerospace (2025) |
| Valor Equity Partners | 6 | $1.9B | Anduril (2022), Slingshot Aerospace (2022, 2022), CHAOS Industries (2025, 2025), Defense Unicorns (2025) |
In our defense tech market deck, we cover the latest tech updates shaping the market
What are the 2026 narratives around fundraising in the defense tech market?
These are the dominant narratives shaping fundraising in the defense tech market in 2026:
- Autonomous drone warfare is becoming the default military doctrine for NATO countries, driving massive defense tech funding into AI-powered aerial platforms and swarm coordination software.
- Counter-drone technology is now the fastest-growing defense tech investment category, with startups building everything from directed energy weapons to interceptor missiles as cheap drone threats multiply.
- European defense tech is no longer a side story, with Germany and the UK producing multiple defense tech unicorns and attracting billions from both local and US venture firms.
- Defense manufacturing is being reinvented by AI and automation, with startups like Hadrian and Divergent Technologies proving that factory innovation is as important as weapons innovation.
- Hypersonic weapons production is moving from government labs to venture-backed startups, with Castelion demonstrating that private companies can build missiles faster and cheaper than legacy defense primes.
- The NATO Innovation Fund has emerged as Europe's most influential early-stage defense tech investor, signaling that government-backed capital is flowing directly into startup rounds.
- GPS-denied navigation and resilient communications are growing defense tech investment themes, driven by electronic warfare vulnerabilities exposed on the Ukraine battlefield.
- Israeli defense tech is producing more fundable startups per capita than any other country, with combat-tested products from the Gaza conflict attracting significant US and European venture capital.
- Defense software-only companies like Onebrief and Defense Unicorns are reaching unicorn valuations, proving that pure software plays can succeed in the defense tech market without building hardware.
- Traditional venture capital firms that once refused to fund defense (Sequoia, Balderton, Accel) are now actively competing for defense tech deals, compressing valuations and raising the bar for founders.
- Underwater autonomy is emerging as the next frontier in defense tech funding, with Saronic, VATN Systems, and Blue Water Autonomy collectively raising over $670M for autonomous naval vessels.
In our defense tech market deck, we will give you useful market maps and grids
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