Defense Unicorns, a US startup specialising in creating environments for defence and other industries to build and use open-source and other software in cloud and air-gapped environments, has raised $136 million in a Series B funding round. This investment propels the company’s valuation past the $1 billion mark, solidifying its status as a unicorn. The round was led by Bain Capital’s Tech Opportunities Fund, with participation from existing investors Ansa Capital, Sapphire Ventures, Valor Equity Partners, AVP, Uncorrelated Ventures, and retired US Army General and former CIA Director David H. Petraeus.
Founded in 2021 and headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, Defense Unicorns develops open-source, air-gap-native software designed to deploy modern code in disconnected, contested environments where militaries operate. Its solutions are used across multiple branches of the US Department of Defense, including the Navy, Army, Air Force, and Space Force, to deliver updates to mission systems that have historically lagged behind commercial software advancements.
The company’s technology addresses a critical need in the defence sector, where traditional reluctance to adopt modern computing due to security concerns is being challenged by the rapidly evolving demands of warfare and the tools developed by adversaries. “Defense Unicorns gives our nation a wartime software advantage,” said Rob Slaughter, co-founder and CEO. “The US has significant commercial software advantages, but the systems we go to war with are typically outdated. At Defense Unicorns, we make software a strategic deterrent by making it easy to deploy and operate software in any mission environment.”
The new capital will be used to expand the firm’s core platforms, including its flagship Unicorn Delivery Service (UDS), a secure and portable system for shipping software into classified or disconnected networks. The company is also scaling its UDS Registry and UDS Army offerings, which aim to standardise secure DevSecOps pipelines across Army programmes and reduce the friction involved in fielding new digital capabilities.
From the investor perspective, Bain Capital partner Dewey Awad framed the deal as a strategic bet on the growing role of software in military readiness. “Defense Unicorns plays a vital role in helping the military modernise mission systems, enabling capabilities that directly improve readiness, resilience, and operational advantage in the field,” he said.
Defense Unicorns’ entry into the billion-dollar club comes amid a broader surge in venture capital interest in defence tech startups. In Europe, Paris-based Harmattan AI also achieved unicorn status this week, raising $200 million at a $1.4 billion valuation in a Series B round led by Dassault Aviation. The French company develops autonomous drones and AI-enabled mission systems and has already attracted strategic backing from national defence ministries.
With fresh funding and expanded backing, Defense Unicorns is poised to deepen its footprint across mission domains where secure, scalable software delivery can deliver real field advantage. This investment underscores the growing recognition of the critical role that advanced software solutions play in modern military operations and national security.