Mach Industries Secures $600M Series C Extension, Valuation Reaches $3.7B
Mach Industries, the Huntington Beach–based defense tech startup, has raised $600 million in a Series C extension round, doubling its valuation to $3.7 billion, the company announced Thursday. The original Series C—a $300 million raise at a $1.8 billion valuation—closed just three months earlier in June 2026. Investors participating in both tranches include Ribbit Capital, Infinite Capital, Bedrock Capital, and Sequoia.
The latest round marks a twofold valuation jump in only three months, continuing a steep upward trajectory. The previous round had already quadrupled Mach's valuation from the $470 million mark set by a $100 million raise announced in June 2025.
Manufacturing Unmanned Systems at Scale
Mach produces a range of unmanned military vehicles and weapons, including vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) drones, long-range strike systems, and counter-drone platforms. The company operates a 115,000-square-foot manufacturing facility at its headquarters in Huntington Beach, California, with additional facilities across the state.
Central to Mach's pitch is its ability to build highly integrated systems at lower cost than incumbent defense contractors. As part of that strategy, the company acquired solid rocket motor (SRM) startup Exquadrum in May 2026 for $50 million in cash and equity, beating out at least eight other potential buyers.
Addressing the SRM Bottleneck with Mach Energetics
The rapid proliferation of drones has created a shortage of SRMs in a market largely dominated by two incumbents. Exquadrum was Mach's answer to that bottleneck. The acquisition has since formed the basis of Mach Energetics, a new business line that produces SRMs as well as jet engines and energetic systems for third parties.
Young Founder, Blue-Chip Backers
Founded and led by 22-year-old Ethan Thornton, Mach is a quintessential example of the defense tech startups attracting major Silicon Valley capital. Thornton dropped out of MIT at 19 to focus on Mach, and soon brought on Sequoia's Stephanie Zhan and Shaun Maguire as investors—the venerable venture firm's first defense tech investment.
After landing a U.S. Army contract in early 2025, Mach also drew the attention of Ribbit Capital, once best known as a fintech investor but more recently involved in a string of high-profile AI deals spanning coding startups like Cognition to neoclouds such as Crusoe.