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Shield AI

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Shield AI

AI-powered autonomous defense systems.

shieldai.com
HQ: San Diego, CA, USA
Defense

Company research

Public company, workplace, funding, and market signals

Updated Jul 29, 2026

Overview

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company building autonomous aircraft and mission-autonomy software for contested environments, with a mission to protect service members and civilians with intelligent systems.

Primary product

Hivemind

Founded

2015

Headquarters

San Diego, California, United States

Team size

1001-5000

Industry

Software Development

Sub-industry

Defense technology / autonomous aircraft software

Offices

600 W Broadway, Ste 600, San Diego, California 92101, United States (HQ)
16240 Gateway Path, Suite 100, Frisco, Texas 75033, United States
2450 Crystal Dr, Ste 200, Arlington, Virginia 22202, United States
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Abu Dhabi Global Market, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Melbourne, Australia
Oslo, Norway
Kyiv, Ukraine

Business model

B2G defense contracts
B2B autonomy software licensing
hardware/platform sales
integration and mission services

Funding

Stage

Series G / late-stage venture

Total raised

$3.6B

Latest round

Series G · Mar 2026

Latest amount

$1.5B

Delayed draw facility

Mar 2026 · Blackstone

$250M

Preferred equity financing

Mar 2026 · Blackstone

$500M

Series G

Mar 2026 · Advent International

$1.5B

Series F

Mar 2025

$240M

Series E extension

Dec 2022 · US Innovative Technology Fund

$60M

Series E

Jun 2022 · Snowpoint Ventures

$165M

Series D

Aug 2021 · Disruptive

$210M

Series C

Feb 2021 · Point72 Ventures

$90M

Grant

Jul 2020

$16.4M

Angel Round

Oct 2015

$595K

People & investors

Leadership

Gary Steele

Chief Executive Officer

Ryan Tseng

President, Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer

Brandon Tseng

President & Co-Founder

Andrew Reiter

Co-Founder

Nathan Michael

Chief Technology Officer

Kingsley Afemikhe

Chief Financial Officer

Michael Yang

Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary

Sharyl Givens

Chief People Officer

Christian Gutierrez

Senior Vice President, Hivemind

Investors

Advent International
Andreessen Horowitz
Apandion
Blackstone
Breyer Capital
Disruptive
Hanwha Aerospace
Homebrew
Innovation X Advisors
JPMorganChase
L3Harris
Point72 Ventures
Riot Ventures
Snowpoint Ventures
SVB Capital
US Innovative Technology Fund

Work & culture

Mission-driven, servant-leadership oriented, and highly team-first, with an emphasis on rigor, speed, candor, resilience, and cross-functional collaboration.

Visa sponsorship

Limited

Compensation

Public postings show strong total-comp packages with salary bands such as $120k-$180k for Senior Staff Technical Sourcer and $210k-$320k for Director, Structures X-BAT, plus bonus, benefits, and equity.

Benefits

medical coverage
mental health EAP
paid parental leave
pet insurance
flexible work hours
gym discounts / onsite gym
free parking
401(k) match
stock/equity benefits
bonus eligibility

Product & market

Pricing

Quote-based, contract-driven enterprise/government pricing for software, hardware platforms, and integration programs.

Differentiators

  • —Combat-tested autonomy stack
  • —Platform-agnostic and modular Hivemind software
  • —Operates in GPS- and comms-denied / contested environments
  • —Combines autonomy software with proprietary aircraft
  • —Closed-loop simulation and validation via Aechelon and Hivemind
  • —Multi-domain autonomy across air, sea, and other unmanned systems

Technology

Hivemind
Hivemind Enterprise
Hivemind SDK
Hivemind Vision
V-BAT
X-BAT
autonomy software
AI pilots
simulation
synthetic reality
perception stack
GPS-denied navigation
multi-agent teaming

Customers

U.S. Department of Defense
U.S. Air Force
U.S. Navy
U.S. Coast Guard
U.S. and allied militaries
government defense agencies
OEMs
Ukraine / Ukrainian forces

Competitors

Anduril
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems
AeroVironment
Kratos Defense
Skydio
L3Harris

Scale & contact

Estimated revenue

USD 200M-300M ARR (public estimate; GetLatka cites 2024 revenue at USD 267M ARR)

Estimated monthly visits

61K

Traffic estimate as of Mar 2026

info@shield.ai+1-619-719-5740

Signals & risks

Other
Jun 2026

Reuters reported repeated V-BAT crashes, a propeller injury that severed fingers during a training exercise, and whistleblower allegations that Shield AI obscured mishaps and safety issues; the company disputed the broader allegations.

Source
Acquisition
Jun 2026

Shield AI completed its acquisition of Aechelon Technology, adding simulation and synthetic reality assets to its product line.

Source

Latest news

Shield AI and GE Aerospace light off X-BAT engine, completing thrust vectoring nozzle integration and clearing path to vertical flight

Shield AI · Jul 2026

Shield AI and GE Aerospace completed engine light-off testing for X-BAT's thrust-vectoring nozzle, a milestone toward vertical flight.

Shield AI completes acquisition of Aechelon Technology

Shield AI · Jun 2026

Shield AI completed the acquisition of Aechelon Technology, bringing simulation and synthetic reality capabilities into the company.

Shield AI awarded U.S. Air Force production contract for Collaborative Combat Aircraft mission autonomy

PRNewswire / Shield AI · Jun 2026

Shield AI said the U.S. Air Force awarded it a production contract for Hivemind mission autonomy in the CCA program, building on prior TMRR work.

Drone crashes and severed fingers at a $13 billion Silicon Valley military startup

Reuters · Jun 2026

Reuters reported safety concerns involving V-BAT crashes, injuries, and whistleblower allegations around mishandled mishap reporting; Shield AI disputed the claims.

Shield AI raises $240M at $5.3B valuation to scale Hivemind Enterprise

Shield AI · Mar 2025

Shield AI completed a $240M strategic funding round at a $5.3B valuation with participation from L3Harris, Hanwha Aerospace, Andreessen Horowitz, U.S. Innovative Technology, and Washington Harbour.

AboutBlogCareersExecutive teamGitHubHomepageLinkedIn companyNewsroomOur TeamX
SourcesHomepageAboutExecutive TeamCareersNewsroomBlogOur TeamLinkedIn companyGitHub orgX accountYouTubeInstagramSeries C press releaseSeries D press releaseSeries E press releaseSeries E extension / TechCrunchSeries F press releaseSeries G / Aechelon Business WireReuters safety investigationHypeStat traffic estimate

Jobs and careers at Shield AI

1 job at Shield AI

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