Anduril, a defense technology startup founded by Palmer Luckey, is planning to raise up to $2.5 billion at a $28 billion valuation, according to those familiar with the issue. This shows a major jump from previous ratings in August.
The fundraiser has only been six months since Anduril secured $1.5 billion in 2008 in financing for Series F, co-led by Founders Fund and Sands Capital, known for supporting major IPOs like Visa. It will be done later.
Andrill is challenging traditional defense contractors such as Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and Northrop Grumman. Unlike these companies, Anduril develops and sells its own products directly to clients, avoiding the usual military contract process.
“The company plans to raise up to $2.5 billion in the round, people who asked not to name it because the details are confidential, said the latest funding was Andrill’s, which began in August. It would double the rating,” CNBC reported.
A spokesman for Andrill declined to comment.
Founded in 2017 by Brian Simpff, Palmer Lucky, Joseph Chen, Matt Grimm and Trey Stevens, Andrill focuses on the development of military institutions and technology for border surveillance. Startups aim to support the frontlines with next-generation technology products. Before establishing Anduril, Luckey sold its former startup Oculus to Facebook for $2 billion in 2014.
“I was on a Trump train longer than anyone else,” Lucky told CNBC’s “Closing Bell Overtime” on November 6th, shortly after winning the Trump election. “The idea that we need to be the most powerful military in the world is not really partisan.”
In December, Anduril partnered with Openai to deploy the National Security Missions advanced AI system. The partnership reflects a broader shift in the tech industry, which has retreated from a ban on military use and forms an alliance between defense contractors and the US Department of Defense. Around the same time, humanity and Palantia announced a collaboration with Amazon Web Services, providing American intelligence and defense agencies with access to human AI models.
While Anduril remains private, Palantir provides software and services to defense agencies, but was a standout performer in the stock market. Over the past year, stocks have skyrocketed 370%, pushing market capitalization by over $250 billion. Palantir’s latest revenue report reveals that government revenues have risen by 45% to $343 million.
Sources say Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund is leading Andrill’s new funding round with a $1 billion commitment. During the 2016 campaign, Thiel, a leading Trump supporter, co-founded Palantir. Founders Fund partner Trae Stephens is also the co-founder of Anduril.
Anduril’s revenue doubled in 2024 to about $1 billion, with an annual contract value of $1.5 billion, sources say.
In 2023, the company deployed several new drones equipped with lattice AI commands and control software. The technology used by the US military and its allies directs human-assisted robotic systems to carry out complex missions.
Unlike high-tech giants like Microsoft and Google, which are distant from selling military technology to the US government, Andrill actively develops military technology that drives AI in the Department of Defense and other military agencies. It’s there. This approach was not without controversy.
Anduril’s portfolio includes surveillance towers and drones, and software designed to automatically monitor areas such as international borders and military bases. The company’s work with federal agencies, particularly its contract with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, to install towers along the US Mexican border, sparked criticism.
“We founded Andrill because we believe Silicon Valley technology companies are worthy of partnering with the Department of Defense,” Andrill CEO Brian Simpff said in a statement.
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