Saronic, a developer of autonomous surface vessels, has secured a $175 million Series B funding round, catapulting the defense tech startup to a $1 billion valuation. Andreessen Horowitz led the investment, with participation from 8VC, Caffeinated Capital, Elad Gil, and NightDragon. This marks the Austin, Texas-based company as the latest unicorn in the flourishing defense technology sector.
Founded in 2022, Saronic designs and builds autonomous surface vehicles, essentially drones for the U.S. Navy that operate on the water’s surface. According to Crunchbase, the company has now raised a total of $245 million. “We are creating an entirely new capability for the maritime domain, one that delivers naval power without the costs and delays of a shipyard,” stated CEO Dino Mavrookas in a released statement. “As the future of naval warfare will rely on manned and unmanned teaming, we must build solutions that easily integrate into the existing fleet and can be produced at scale to meet any emerging threat.”
This recent funding round for Saronic follows closely on the heels of a major investment in another defense technology company, Germany-based Helsing. Helsing, which develops artificial intelligence software for defense applications, recently secured approximately $489 million in funding led by General Catalyst, valuing the company at $5.4 billion. The startup’s software enhances weapons capabilities in drones and jet fighters, improving battlefield decision-making.
With these investments, global venture capital funding in defense tech has surpassed $1 billion so far this year, based on Crunchbase data. Although this is still behind the pace set last year, when funding approached $2 billion for the entire year of 2023, one significant fundraising event can quickly bring the sector back to its previous investment levels.
