Furientis lands $25M from Benchmark to mass-produce low-cost missile interceptors
Four years into the defense tech boom that arguably began when Russia invaded Ukraine, the storied Silicon Valley venture firm Benchmark is placing its first bet on a pure defense startup.
The VC is leading a $25 million seed round into Furientis, a startup on a mission to mass-produce interceptor missiles. Just one year old, the company—whose name means “of fury” in Latin—has already secured a funded Pentagon contract to build mid-range interceptors.
Furientis’ seed round follows a $5 million pre-seed that was announced in May. The startup is now valued at $125 million, according to a person familiar with the company.
Until recently, venture capitalists largely steered clear of defense startups. Investments in the sector were viewed as morally controversial, and the process of securing government contracts was too lengthy and uncertain to justify venture funding.
But that sentiment changed rapidly after conflicts in Ukraine and Iran began...
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