Castelion, a defense technology company, has secured $350 million in Series B financing to support the development of its first hypersonic weapon, called Blackbeard, and the construction of its production and final-assembly facility, Project Ranger.
Altimeter Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners led the funding round, with Andreessen Horowitz, Avenir, BlueYard, Champion Hill, First In, General Catalyst, Interlagos and Lavrock Ventures also participating, Castelion said Friday.
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How Will the Series B Funding Support Castelion’s Mission?
The investment will enable the company to expand its workforce and expand manufacturing capacity in the United States.
Castelion’s Project Ranger in Sandoval County, New Mexico, is a 1,000-acre solid rocket motor campus expected to produce thousands of Blackbeard missiles per year. Announced in November, the site is also projected to generate over $650 million in economic output over the next decade.
The company will also continue a rapid test cadence into 2026, including increasingly complex demonstrations and integration with operational launch platforms.
Castelion already conducted over 20 development flight tests to validate the performance of weapon-critical subsystems, including internally manufactured solid rocket motors, seekers and mission software.
The company has also won contracts to integrate Blackbeard weapon systems onto Army and Navy platforms.
“Blackbeard helps close America’s hypersonic capability gap against China and Russia,” Castelion CEO Bryon Hargis stated. “This funding lets us build fast, test often, and produce at volumes that matter in the real world.”
How Much Did Castelion Raise in Its Series A Funding Round?
The El Segundo, California-based defense technology manufacturer previously raised $100 million in combined equity and debt financing to accelerate the development of its mass-producible hypersonic weapon. The funding included $70 million financing from Lightspeed Venture Partners, Lavrock Ventures, a16z, Cantos, First In, BlueYard Capital and Interlagos. The rest are venture debt financing provided by Silicon Valley Bank.
