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Shield AI Raises $300M, Valued at $2.8B for Autonomous Military Aircraft Software

The San Diego-based defense startup Shield AI Inc. has raised an additional $300 million, extending its Series F round to $2.8 billion in valuation. The funds will advance Hivemind, an autonomous flight platform designed for military aircraft, allowing navigation without GPS or human input.

Hercules Capital provided $200 million in venture debt, while an additional $100 million in equity capital was included in the Series F extension. The valuation increased from $2.3 billion to $2.8 billion since the initial closure of the round in December last year.

Shield AI's Hivemind-powered aircraft, tested with quadcopters and flight simulators, can operate in areas with jammed communications. The V-Bat, a vertical take-off and landing drone, is a key component, capable of carrying Nvidia Corp.'s Xavier NX CPUs to accelerate autonomous flying algorithms.

According to CEO Ryan Tseng, the software, named V-Bat Teams, enables multiple drones to fly in unison. The company plans to test its software on the XQ-58 Valkyrie, an experimental drone, in early next year.