U.S. defense technology startup Mach Industries raised $300 million in a Series C round, valuing the company at $1.8 billion.

TechCrunch reported on June 1 local time that Mach Industries' valuation has nearly quadrupled from a year earlier.

Mach Industries raised $100 million in June 2025 at a $470 million valuation, and sharply increased its valuation in the latest round. Total funding is about $485 million. Existing investors Bedrock Capital, Sequoia Capital and Khosla Ventures participated, and the round was led by deep tech investor Infinite Capital and Ribbit Capital.

The larger fundraising aligns with rising investment demand for autonomous weapons and drone defense systems. Founded in 2023, Mach Industries is led by 22-year-old founder and Chief Executive Ethan Thornton (이선 손턴). Thornton dropped out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology at 19 and started the company.

The company initially aimed to raise $200 million but increased the amount as demand poured in. Thornton said he planned to raise $200 million but demand was very high, and he increased it to $300 million because he was satisfied with the price. He said the round remains oversubscribed even at $300 million.

Mach Industries has expanded its product lineup quickly despite its short history. It is developing 5 autonomous aircraft. They include the jet-powered vertical takeoff and landing aircraft Viper, the high-altitude glide vehicle Glide that can launch weapons, the aerial surveillance platform Stratos, the low-cost anti-drone interceptor system Dart, and the long-range munition-launch platform Pike. The company said it plans to start production of at least 3 systems next year.

It also added more U.S. Defense Department contracts. Mach Industries said it won a contract this week from the Defense Innovation Unit to develop the U.S. Navy's new runway-independent strike aircraft. Thornton said the aircraft will be very large and could also be applied in the commercial sector. The contract covers a sixth aircraft that had not been disclosed.

Its production base is also expanding quickly. Mach Industries increased headcount to about 350 from about 10 people in its first year. It has a 115,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Huntington Beach, California, and operates design and production hubs in multiple regions. Thornton said it will add 4 production facilities by the end of 2026.

Investors' decision to deploy large capital also reflects a push to secure the rocket motor supply chain. Mach Industries acquired solid rocket motor startup XQudrum last month for $50 million in cash and stock. The company said it secured XQudrum over more than 8 potential acquisition candidates.

The solid rocket motor market is currently supplied mainly by a small number of large defense contractors, including Aerojet Rocketdyne and Northrop Grumman. With expanding drone demand, delivery delays are stretching into multiple years. Mach Industries said the acquisition allows it to control rocket motors in-house and it has also started an engine sales business called Mach Energetics. Thornton did not disclose revenue but said the business is split 50-50 between government sales and sales to other companies.

The company also cited its fast development speed as a strength. Thornton said it traditionally takes 4 years to build a jet engine, but Mach Industries started without a team and reached jet engine ignition in about 8 months. The fundraising is attributed in part to its development timeline showing that defense startups aim to supply the military and commercial markets with products that are faster and cheaper than those of established defense contractors.