Ex-SpaceX founders raised $1bn to out-produce Lockheed

This article was published on August 21, 2026 Castelion has raised $1bn at a $13bn valuation, four years after three SpaceX executives left to build missiles. The bet is that hypersonic weapons are a manufacturing problem rather than an engineering one. The Navy has so far ordered 50 pre-production prototypes. Castelion has raised $1bn at a $13bn valuation. Three SpaceX executives founded the company in 2022 to build missiles. Its first product is Blackbeard, a hypersonic strike weapon designed for quantity rather than craft. The structure repays a close read. The round is $800m in equity plus $250m of committed financing for a revolving credit facility, the company said. A revolver is a credit line rather than a cheque. The equity figure is the one that sets the valuation. JPMorganChase’s Strategic Investment Group co-led with Andreessen Horowitz and funds managed by Carlyle. Lightspeed, Lavrock Ventures, Altimeter, General Catalyst and Interlagos all returned. T. Rowe Price came in new, and that is the detail a banker notices. A public-markets manager has taken a position before there is a public market. Castelion does not claim to build a better missile than Lockheed Martin or R