Castelion hits $13B valuation to mass-produce hypersonic missiles
Castelion, a hypersonic missile startup founded by former SpaceX executives, has raised a $1 billion Series C funding round at a $13 billion valuation, co-led by Andreessen Horowitz, Carlyle and JP Morgan Chase. The California-based company aims to manufacture hypersonic weapons more cheaply and quickly than established defence contractors, and the fresh capital arrives as the Pentagon seeks to expand its hypersonic missile stockpile to keep pace with China's arsenal of weapons capable of exceeding Mach 5.
Founded in 2022, Castelion has already secured more than $500 million in US military contracts. The new funding, comprising $800 million in equity and a $250 million revolving credit facility, also drew participation from existing investors including Lightspeed, General Catalyst and Altimeter. The company plans to use the money to ramp up production of its Blackbeard missiles and other hypersonic systems at its New Mexico manufacturing facility.
- Castelion raises $1B, hitting a $13B valuation for hypersonic missiles
- Startup aims to outpace defence primes on cost and speed
- Funds go towards Blackbeard missile production in New Mexico
New here? Start with this
Castelion is a US startup, founded in 2022 by former SpaceX engineers, that builds hypersonic missiles: weapons that travel faster than five times the speed of sound and are hard to track or intercept. It has just raised $1 billion from investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Carlyle and JP Morgan Chase, valuing the company at $13 billion.
The company's pitch is that it can build these missiles faster and more cheaply than long-established defence firms like Lockheed Martin or Raytheon, using a manufacturing approach borrowed from the commercial space industry. It has already won over $500 million in contracts with the US military.
This matters because hypersonic weapons are seen as a key area of military competition between the United States and China, with the Pentagon keen to build up its stockpile to match China's arsenal. Castelion's rise reflects a broader shift in US defence spending towards newer, venture-backed startups rather than relying solely on traditional contractors.