Hypersonica raises €100M Series B to build hypersonic missiles for European defence
What's the deal? German-British defence startup Hypersonica has raised €100 million in a Series B round led by US venture firms Lightspeed Venture Partners and General Catalyst, with existing investor Plural also taking part. The Munich-based company wants to turn its HS-1 prototype into a deployable hypersonic weapon and reach mass production by 2029.
Why now? The round is a sharp step-up from Hypersonica's roughly €23 million Series A in February, which followed a reported prototype test flight. The new capital gives the young company substantially more runway to chase its 2029 goal.
What's the endgame? Chief executive Philipp Kert says the missiles are meant to strengthen European deterrence against potential Russian attacks. NATO expects European hypersonic missiles capable of striking targets about 2,000km away.
What's next? During its first test flight in Norway, the HS-1 reached six times the speed of sound but flew only 300km and lacked a guidance system. Hypersonica plans its next tests in 2027, focused on guidance and maneuverability, and aims to develop its own solid-propellant engine.
Germany and the United Kingdom are named as possible first customers. German defence minister Boris Pistorius visited the startup at the end of October to review the project.
What could go wrong? The capability remains under development, and the funding and test milestones do not establish that an operational weapon is close. The HS-1's first flight used an engine from the German Aerospace Center and Bayern-Chemie, but the DLRDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has ended its cooperation with the startup.
The signal: The round ranks in the top 7% by size among all-time Series B hardware rounds in Germany, a sample of 94 deals. It is notable not just as a large defence-tech raise, but as a private company positioning itself for a potential role in a major government programme, with Britain and Germany planning a joint deep-strike effort.
Read more: ua.news
Image credit: Hypersonica
