This Week's Dealflow: Kraken, Snowcap Compute, Nominal, Raphe mPhibr
Plus: Defense Contracting 101 for Startups from Andreesen Horowitz; a new German defense tech VC -- and more!
For 26 June 2025, here are the dual-use deals, investors, and news we’re covering:
Kraken Technologies Receives Investments from NATO, UK Government
Uncrewed surface vessel (USV) provider Kraken Technology Group announced it has received funding commitments from NATO Innovation Fund, the UK’s National Security Strategic Investment Fund (NSSIF), and European VC firm Superangel. The amount of funding committed was not disclosed.
Kraken, which develops USVs for surveillance, force protection, and multi-domain operations, will use the funding for manufacturing, R&D, and rapid prototyping.
Kraken is already delivering scale production orders to NATO countries from its facilities in Hampshire. Kraken’s K3 Scout Medium USV is in use on operational exercises with NATO.
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Snowcap Compute Raises $23M Seed Round
https://www.snowcapcompute.com/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email#about
Snowcap Compute, which is building a superconducting computing platform has raised $23 million in seed funding. The round was led by Playground Global and included investments from Cambium Capital and Vsquared Ventures.
Snowcap’s architecture is designed to enable data centers optimized for AI, quantum, and high-performance computing (HPC).
Nominal Closes $75M Million Series B
Nominal, which provides a integrated software-based test stack for physical systems, announced a $75 million Series B led by Sequoia Capital, with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners, Lux Capital, General Catalyst, and Founders Fund.
Nominal’s solution is designed to automate data capture, flag edge-case failures, and feed results straight into operations—whether in a wind tunnel, on a flight line, or inside a contested environment. Its customers include Anduril Industries, Shield AI, and the U.S. Air Force.
Raphe mPhibr Closes $100M Series B
Indian startup Raphe mPhibr has raised $100M in a series B funding round led by General Catalyst. Founded in 2017, Raphe mPhibr builds drones for military and border surveillance. Its customers include various Indian government agencies, such as the Army, Navy, Air Force, and border security forces.
This Week’s Investors:
Cambium Capital
General Catalyst
Founders Fund
Lightspeed Venture Partners
Lux Capital
National Security Strategic Investment Fund (NSSIF)
NATO Innovation Fund (NIF)
Playground Global
Sequoia Capital
Superangel
Vsquared Ventures
Contact Us
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