US defense tech startups and companies

Makes secure mobile software, including Mustr and the Adyton Operations Kit, that digitizes personnel accountability, equipment inventory and readiness tracking for military units.

Designs, 3D prints and tests in-space propulsion systems and chemical rocket engines for spacecraft and defense missions.

Y Combinator-backed maker of Ghostfin, an 8-foot autonomous mini-submarine with a 250-pound payload and about 1,000 nautical miles of range.

Operates very low Earth orbit satellites delivering 10 cm visible and thermal infrared imagery, now focused on government and defense customers.

Builds Bullfrog, an autonomous robotic weapon station that aims machine guns such as the M240 to shoot down close-in drones.

Builds the Lattice software platform and autonomous systems, from air defense and counter-drone interceptors to uncrewed aircraft and undersea vehicles, plus high-rate manufacturing.

Mass-produces standardized satellite buses for government and commercial constellations, including the Aries and Nova platforms.

Supplies vehicle software, simulation and autonomy stacks for automotive, trucking and defense, including uncrewed ground, air and maritime systems.

Builds AI planning and monitoring software for air traffic, airline and military operations, including command and control for the Army and Air Force.

Makes Rift Alpha, a 3D-printed, hand-launched autonomous interceptor that destroys FPV and Group 2 drones out to about 2 km.

Builds human-supervised AI agents that operate undercover in online forums and messaging channels to support national security and law enforcement investigations.

Founder-owned launch company developing Rocket 4 and a mobile launch system for responsive national security launch, plus spacecraft engines.

Develops data compaction and Neurpac networking software that shrinks machine data to raise effective bandwidth and security on military satellite and tactical links.

Builds Archimedes, a lightweight high-energy laser turret combining machine vision and radar to shoot down drones, with operations in San Francisco and Detroit.

Builds integrated RF detection, AI acoustic sensing and compact radar systems that detect and track drones and aircraft for security and counter-drone missions.

Develops AuterionOS and Nemyx, software that turns low-cost drones and ground robots into autonomous, coordinated swarms; engineering in Zurich and Munich.

Designs and 3D prints small expendable turbojet engines, the Frenzy family, for affordable cruise missiles, loitering munitions and drones.

Builds long-range, fully autonomous ships of 100 to 150 feet designed from the keel up for US Navy fleet missions.

Develops onboard AI agents that let operators command teams of drones and robots by voice over existing radios, even in disconnected environments.

Develops high-temperature resins, carbon-carbon thermal protection and composite materials for hypersonic glide bodies, rocket motors and aircraft.

Carnegie Mellon spinout building sensors and autonomy for military ground vehicles, including leader-follower logistics trucks and modular UGVs.

Develops low-cost, mass-producible hypersonic strike weapons, led by the Blackbeard missile, with in-house solid rocket motor production in New Mexico.

Builds software-defined phased-array payloads, satellite buses and communications systems for defense, and is building its own satellite network.

Develops the Coherent Distributed Network and Vanquish radars that detect small drones and other aerial threats faster for military operators.

Founder-owned maker of the RAACM, a 3D-printed low-cost subsonic cruise missile family for air, surface and ground launch, produced in Manassas.

Builds ultra-large autonomous underwater vehicles that haul containerized payloads over thousands of nautical miles for undersea logistics.

Builds Anthem, a long-range heavy-payload ground-launched strike weapon, with a 105,000 sq ft factory in Grand Prairie, Texas and sites in Germany and Israel.

Builds software-defined electronic warfare hardware and software, including the Wraith airborne EW platform, to contest the electromagnetic spectrum.

Makes small software-defined reconnaissance drones such as the REVENANT multirotor and autonomy software for short-range tactical missions.

Develops AI models that turn ordinary low-light cameras into digital night vision, as a cheaper alternative to image-intensifier goggles.

Builds UDS, an airgap-native, open-source software delivery platform for secure deployment of apps to classified and disconnected mission systems.

Builds low-cost AI radio-frequency sensors and software that detect, classify and locate signals such as jammers and drone links across wide areas.

Operates an AI-driven additive manufacturing and assembly system that produces structures for missiles, drones and vehicles for defense primes.

Builds Leonidas, a solid-state, software-defined high-power microwave system that disables drone swarms and electronics.

Produces 3D-printed solid rocket propellant, rocket motors and artillery motors, with production in Lawton, Oklahoma and missile integration in Mississippi.

Builds modular, 3D-printed military drones and xCell, a containerized factory that produces airframes near the front line.

Builds the SkyDome counter-drone system: TrueView radar plus DroneHunter interceptors that capture hostile drones with nets.

Develops AutoDrive autonomy kits and the ROGUE uncrewed vehicle for military ground vehicles, evolved from Robotic Research founded in 2002.

Builds low-cost mid-range interceptor missiles assembled from readily available components, targeting 1,000 systems per year per factory.

Builds Ark, AI decision software on a national security knowledge graph for defense acquisition, supply chain, production and sustainment.

Builds large spacecraft modules, including an Orbital Carrier that stores and deploys satellites on demand for Space Force missions.

Builds Lifter Lite, a low-cost autonomous cargo aircraft that carries 2,000 to 10,000 pounds over thousands of miles for contested logistics.

Runs highly automated precision machining factories that produce aerospace, missile and submarine components for primes and the US Navy.

Develops autonomy software and fleets of autonomous surface vessels for naval missions, with collaborative control across sea, air and ground platforms.

Builds autonomous precision munitions for air and sea that operate in jammed, GPS-denied environments, produced in Los Angeles and Oslo.

Develops uncrewed high-Mach aircraft and turbine-based combined cycle propulsion, flying the Quarterhorse series toward supersonic and Mach 3 flight for defense customers.

Operates passive radar and radio-frequency direction-finding networks that monitor low-altitude airspace and detect drones for defense and critical infrastructure.

Builds in-space transportation vehicles, the Mira and Helios orbital transfer vehicles, for rapid delivery of payloads including defense missions to LEO and GEO.

Infuses ceramics such as nitrides, carbides and borides into metal surfaces to make components for hypersonic missiles, turbines, rocket nozzles and submarines.

Builds Arc, an autonomous reentry vehicle that stores cargo in orbit and delivers it anywhere on Earth for military logistics and hypersonic testing.

Builds large, high-power satellite buses designed for mass production, aimed at defense and commercial missions across LEO, MEO and GEO.

Operates a global network of ground-based phased array radars that track objects in low Earth orbit for space domain awareness and missile defense.

Formerly ABL Space Systems, now builds missile defense systems and hypersonic flight test vehicles after pivoting from small launch in 2025.

Builds LumbraOS, a model-neutral operating system that orchestrates auditable AI agents for analysts on classified Pentagon and intelligence networks.

Builds low-cost strike weapons including the Viper one-way attack vehicle and a vertical-takeoff cruise missile, with in-house propulsion and energetics.

Forms sheet metal structures with AI-guided robotic RoboCraftsman cells without dies or molds, for missiles, hypersonics, aircraft and vehicles.

Builds Spike, a counter-drone system pairing a Spotter sensor with Seeker, a 250-gram tube-launched interceptor drone for small FPV threats.

Makes portable AI-enhanced radar and edge sensing units that detect, classify and track small drones for counter-UAS and airspace awareness.

Develops virtual reality training platforms such as READY VR for hard and soft job skills, used by the US Air Force.

Designs and operates LEO satellite constellations on its Halo platform for Earth observation, wildfire detection and national security missions.

Mass-produces low-cost Archer FPV strike drones and the Bandit interceptor with a vertically integrated, NDAA-compliant component stack.

Makes rare-earth-free iron nitride permanent magnets from domestic iron and nitrogen for defense, aerospace, robotics and electrification.

Builds URZA, a vendor-agnostic orchestration platform that coordinates mixed fleets of autonomous systems across domains for the military and intelligence community.

Builds Portal, a mass-producible multi-beam phased array ground station network, to connect satellites for government and commercial operators.

Produces sintered NdFeB rare earth magnets in Texas, largely from recycled feedstock, for defense platforms, automotive and industrial motors; formerly Urban Mining Company.

Builds ground-based optical telescopes, laser communications ground stations and in-space payloads for space domain awareness, with manufacturing in Detroit.

Builds collaborative AI planning software, an operating system for military command staffs to build and update operational plans.

Develops in-space refueling infrastructure, including the RAFTI refueling port accepted by the Space Force for military satellites, plus fuel shuttles and depots.

Builds off-road autonomy software and the ULTRA uncrewed ground vehicle for breaching, reconnaissance and logistics missions.

Makes automated airborne imaging sensors and onboard analytics software that speed up ISR, mapping and wildfire intelligence missions.

Designs and manufactures the C100 multi-mission quadcopter and FPV strike drones for the US Army at its Huntsville drone factory.

Develops low-cost miniature guided missiles, the Harpe family, launched from multi-shot launchers to shoot down drones.

Refines rare earth oxides into metals and alloys with a zero-waste process at plants in Massachusetts and New Hampshire for magnet and defense supply chains.

Builds Legion, an open integration and data fusion layer that connects sensors, effectors and autonomous systems from different vendors.

Develops Supernova, a highly maneuverable spacecraft using solar thermal propulsion to move between LEO, MEO and GEO for space domain awareness and servicing.

Makes Anura, natural-language command and control software that lets crews direct drones, sensors, radios and vehicles by voice.

Runs a digital investment casting foundry that prints casting patterns from design files to make superalloy parts without hard tooling.

Acquires and builds US engineering and manufacturing businesses producing hard-tech products, including drone batteries and defense components.

Develops AI and software products for defense and national security missions, including cyber readiness and battlefield awareness tools.

Builds ATARS, an airborne augmented reality system that projects virtual adversaries into the pilot's view during real flight training.

Builds rugged heads-up display glasses, wearable computers and watches that fuse soldier, sensor and mission data into one operational picture.

Builds TyrOS, AI predictive logistics software that runs at the edge to plan sustainment and autonomous resupply in contested environments.

Builds wind and solar powered uncrewed surface vehicles, from the Explorer to the larger Surveyor and Voyager, for maritime surveillance and ocean data.

Builds autonomous surface vessels from small attritable craft to larger ships, with autonomy software and a dedicated shipyard for the US Navy and allies.

Provides AI training data, model evaluation and generative AI platforms for commercial customers and governments, including the US Department of Defense.

Trains Fury, a defense vision-language-action foundation model that lets operators command fleets of drones and ground robots in natural language.

Builds space-based optical sensors and autonomy software that let satellites detect and track other objects for space domain awareness.

Makes autonomy and remote command systems that convert crewed vessels into uncrewed boats, plus the STORMRUNNER autonomous craft.

Builds small solar-electric uncrewed surface vehicles, including long-endurance Lightfish and Quickfish boats, for maritime surveillance and security.

Operates Game Warden, a managed DevSecOps platform that helps software vendors get authority to operate and deploy on Defense Department networks.

Designs and builds wire harnesses for aircraft, spacecraft, satellites and defense systems with software-driven design and automated assembly.

Develops the Hivemind AI pilot and the V-BAT vertical takeoff drone, flying autonomously without GPS or communications for military reconnaissance and strike missions.

Provides onboard cybersecurity and operational intelligence for military platforms and transport fleets by monitoring vehicle data buses.

Builds sensor-carrying quadruped robots and autonomy software for reconnaissance in difficult and dangerous terrain, with R&D near Tel Aviv.

Spun out of Sierra Nevada Corporation, builds the Dream Chaser spaceplane, satellite buses, habitats and rocket engines, including defense work.

Develops a low-cost, ground-launched missile interceptor to defeat drones and missiles, building most subsystems in house.

Builds autonomous small drones such as the X10D for defense, public safety and infrastructure, with production at a factory in Hayward, California.

Provides space domain awareness data, a global optical sensor network and the Beacon coordination tool for government and commercial satellite operators.

Trains military-specific AI models, Omega for command-level reasoning and Alpha for the tactical edge, to support operational decisions.

Builds an orbital power grid that beams solar energy to satellites with optical power beaming, raising power for defense and commercial spacecraft.

Builds Otter servicing spacecraft that dock with satellites for life extension, inspection and deorbit, for the Space Force, SDA, NASA and commercial operators.

Develops high-power microwave and directed energy systems, first for counter-drone defense, using gyrotron know-how from the founders' earlier microwave launch work.

Develops Nova, a fully reusable medium-lift launch vehicle, targeting commercial and national security launch missions.

Operates the Roc carrier aircraft and the reusable, autonomous Talon-A hypersonic test vehicle for Missile Defense Agency and DoD flight testing.

Builds ParallaxOS, hardware-agnostic software that fuses radars, RF detectors, cameras and effectors into one counter-drone picture.

Builds large, long-range uncrewed aircraft for sensing and strike, with Legion software that lets one operator control many aircraft.

Builds low-cost, attritable small ground robots that operate as autonomous swarms for reconnaissance and strike support.

Combines autonomous underwater vehicles with Absolute Ocean, a platform that fuses sonar and ocean data for near-real-time seabed intelligence.

Makes a visual navigation system, hardware and software, that gives any military drone position and heading without GPS by matching camera views to map data.

Develops in-space assembly, welding and X-ray inspection systems for building large orbital platforms and inspecting objects in orbit.

Builds Jackal autonomous orbital vehicles and Mosaic mission autonomy software for space domain awareness and space security operations.

Makes the Frontline Perception System, edge machine learning software that lets soldiers build and run target recognition models on local sensor data.

Builds DROID spacecraft for rendezvous, proximity operations and space domain awareness, plus surveillance payloads and Starfire mission software.

Builds software that industrializes offensive cyber operations for the US military and intelligence community.

Builds low-cost Mako underwater drones, the Leviathan surface mothership and the Kraken recovery system for ocean ISR and seabed missions.

Builds and operates high-resolution synthetic aperture radar satellites, selling imagery and tasking to defense and intelligence customers.

Designs and manufactures solid rocket motors, hypersonic engines and space propulsion using additive manufacturing for tactical missiles and launch.

Builds AI software that collects and analyzes foreign-language open source and other data to give military and intelligence users battlefield and strategic insight.

Builds orbital capsules that reenter Earth's atmosphere, used for in-space manufacturing and as recoverable hypersonic flight testbeds for the Air Force.

Builds the Skelmir family of low-cost autonomous underwater vehicles that double as lightweight torpedoes, with GPS-free inertial navigation.

Develops rotating detonation rocket engines and ramjet propulsion for hypersonic aircraft and long-range defense missiles.

Builds a Visual Positioning System that lets drones navigate without GPS by matching camera imagery to maps and landmarks, with forward operations in Kyiv.

Builds AI readiness and decision software for military maintenance, materiel, personnel and supply chain, grown out of Caltech and NASA JPL research.

Makes low-cost turbojet engines, starting with a 100-pound-thrust class engine, for attritable cruise missiles and unmanned aircraft.

Manufactures sintered rare earth permanent magnets in the United States, with a recycling-based supply chain, for defense and commercial systems.

Builds AI decision support software for military commanders, starting with logistics planning for fuel, ammunition and transport routes.

Manufactures solid rocket motors and energetics for tactical missiles, hypersonic test vehicles and launch, with a production campus in Luling, Texas.

Building Pulsar, a 258-satellite LEO navigation constellation offering jam-resistant, encrypted positioning and timing as a complement to GPS.

Builds an AI-assisted fire control system that attaches to standard rifles and automatically corrects aim to hit small drones.