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US defence technology company Castelion has raised US$1 billion ($1.4 billion) in Series C funding to accelerate mass production of its Blackbeard hypersonic strike weapon, develop a longer-range missile and expand into lower-cost air and missile defence systems.
Castelion has secured US$1 billion ($1.4 billion) in new financing as the rapidly expanding defence technology company moves to scale production of its Blackbeard hypersonic strike weapon and broaden its portfolio.
The Series C round comprised US$800 million ($1.11 billion) in equity and US$250 million ($348.2 million) in committed revolving credit, valuing Castelion at approximately US$13 billion ($18.1 billion). The company said the funding will support three priorities: expanding Blackbeard production, accelerating a new longer-range precision strike system and developing defensive systems.
Castelion said Blackbeard was designed from the outset for industrial-scale production, with the company targeting fielding in 2027. It has secured more than US$500 million ($696.4 million) in US military contracts over the past 18 months and progressed the weapon from a clean-sheet design to a program of record in less than four years.
A major portion of the new investment will expand Castelion’s Project Ranger manufacturing campus in New Mexico. The 1,000-acre facility is designed for high-rate hypersonic weapons production, with the company previously committing more than US$250 million ($348.2 million) to infrastructure at the site.
Castelion is also accelerating development of a substantially longer-range precision strike weapon based on technologies, components and manufacturing techniques developed for Blackbeard.
The company said the objective is to complement sophisticated, high-cost weapons with a cheaper alternative that can be manufactured at much higher rates, potentially allowing hypersonic strike capabilities to be deployed in meaningful quantities.
A third line of development will focus on defensive systems, applying Castelion’s manufacturing methods and rapid development model to air and missile defence.
The company has already made significant progress with the US military. In April, the US Navy awarded Castelion a US$105 million ($146.23 million) contract to integrate Blackbeard onto the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and pursue an early operational capability in 2027.
The latest investment highlights a fundamental shift underway in US defence acquisition: combining private capital, rapid hardware development and high-volume manufacturing to address concerns over the cost and availability of advanced munitions.
Castelion said its approach is intended to produce weapons at a fraction of the cost of traditional systems while maintaining the performance required for high-end conflict.
The company is also exploring distributed applications for its technology. In June, Castelion and autonomous vessel developer Saronic announced plans to demonstrate the integration of hypersonic weapons with autonomous surface vessels, potentially enabling more distributed maritime strike capabilities.
Castelion’s rapid expansion represents one of the clearest examples of the emerging push to combine advanced weapons technology with commercial-style manufacturing and investment models, with scale, cost and production speed treated as fundamental elements of military capability rather than afterthoughts.
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