- Companies
- STARK
Last STARK valuation
$4.1B
Undisclosed stage · Jun 2026
Last STARK funding round
$582M
Undisclosed stage · Jun 2026
Cumulative funding STARK raised
$659M
across 4 funding rounds
Key investors in STARK
Sequoia Capital
Founders Fund
Project A Ventures
NATO Innovation Fund
Doepfner capital
8VC
About STARK
STARK is a developer of integrated defense and security systems for military and law enforcement applications. The company produces tactical protection gear, surveillance platforms, and strategic communication tools designed for high-threat missions. STARK focuses on modular systems that enhance operational integrity in combat and border security scenarios worldwide.
Founded
2024
HQ
Website
Status
Privately held
Customer focus
B2G
Revenue model
Product sales
Valuation
$4.1B (Jun 2026)
Sectors
STARK Valuation
STARK is currently valued at $4.1B, based on its undisclosed-stage round in June 2026.
The $582M round was led by Founders Fund and Sequoia Capital, with participation from Air Street Capital, NATO Innovation Fund, 201 Ventures, Doepfner capital, Advent International and 1 other investor.
STARK's valuation has grown 42x from $98M at its Series A in October 2024 to $4.1B in June 2026, across 4 priced rounds.
STARK valuation by funding round
| Date | Stage | Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| Jun 2026 | Undisclosed stage | $4.1B |
| Feb 2026 | Undisclosed stage | $1.2B |
| Aug 2025 | Undisclosed stage | $500M |
| Oct 2024 | Series A | $98M |
STARK Funding History
STARK has raised a total of $659M across 4 funding rounds.
STARK's first fundraising round was a $15M Series A in October 2024. The most recent completed round was a $582M undisclosed-stage round in June 2026.
STARK funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2026 | Undisclosed stage | Founders Fund (lead); Sequoia Capital (lead); Air Street Capital; NATO Innovation Fund; 201 Ventures; Doepfner capital; Advent International; Project A Ventures | $582M | $4.1B | Stark Defence, a Berlin-based startup developing autonomous strike drones and command-and-control systems, raised €500 million ($570 million) in a funding round led by Sequoia Capital and Founders Fund, with participation from the NATO Innovation Fund, Project A, Air Street Capital, 201 Ventures, Advent International, and Döpfner Capital. The round values the company at €3.2 billion, though some reports suggest valuations as high as €3.5 billion. This brings Stark's total funding to approximately €640–€660 million, up from €140–€160 million prior to this round. Over 80% of the capital will be invested directly into R&D and manufacturing, including new electronic warfare research facilities and scaling production to thousands of systems per month. The strategic rationale centers on strengthening Europe’s defence industrial base, advancing sovereign defence capabilities, and expanding production capacity for loitering munitions and strike drones. Stark was founded in 2024 and is two years old, focusing on kamikaze/kamikaze-style drones and electronic warfare systems. The company operates out of Berlin and is positioning itself as a key player in European military technology amid rising private capital inflows into defence tech. |
| Feb 2026 | Undisclosed stage | Founders Fund (lead) | - | $1.2B | Stark is a German defense technology startup founded in 2024 specializing in armed strike drones. The company recently secured a fresh undisclosed funding round led by U.S.-based Founders Fund with participation from European investors, propelling its post-money valuation above €1 billion ($1.2 billion). This follows a prior $62 million round in August 2025 led by Sequoia Capital that valued Stark at roughly $500 million, bringing total disclosed funding to about $100 million. Backers include Thiel Capital, NATO Innovation Fund, Project A, In-Q-Tel, and Döpfner Capital. Stark employs around 450 people and plans to double its workforce by the end of 2026 to support production expansion. The company has opened a new location in Stockholm after entering the UK market in November 2025. A major framework agreement with the German armed forces is imminent, potentially worth up to $2.8 billion, with an initial €280-332 million booked this year to equip a brigade in Lithuania by end-2026. The unicorn valuation reflects surging European defense demand amid geopolitical shifts, positioning Stark to capitalize on government contracts for advanced drone systems. |
| Aug 2025 | Undisclosed stage | Sequoia Capital (lead); Peter Thiel; 8VC; NATO Innovation Fund; Thiel Capital; Doepfner capital; Project A Ventures; IQT | $62M | $500M | Berlin-based defense tech startup Stark, founded in 2024 by Florian Seibel (co-founder and former CEO of Quantum Systems), develops unmanned systems including strike UAVs for NATO allies and partner militaries like Ukraine. Its flagship product, OWE-V Virtus, features vertical take-off, X-shaped wing design, 5kg warhead, and onboard AI for targeting and navigation. Stark focuses on software-defined platforms and AI enabling operators to control multiple systems, emphasizing modularity, rapid deployability, and adaptation to battlefield needs. The company tests systems in Ukraine and plans potential local production. Stark raised $62 million in a funding round led by Sequoia Capital, with participation from Peter Thiel, valuing the company at $500 million post-money and bringing total funding past $100 million. This follows prior raises: €14M ($16.32M) last fall and $15M angel from Peter Thiel in April, at ~€90M ($105M) valuation. Proceeds will accelerate development and deployment of defense technologies, scale production of OWE-V Virtus, enhance AI R&D for targeting/navigation, expand Ukraine testing, open global offices, establish local production if demand grows, and hire engineering talent. Stark recently expanded to the UK with a drone facility and acquired Berlin-based Pleno for autonomous navigation and drone swarming capabilities, positioning it among Europe's fastest-growing defense tech firms amid geopolitical tensions and Ukraine conflict. The defense drone sector gains momentum with demand for scalable, AI-powered systems for European and NATO forces. |
| Oct 2024 | Series A | Sequoia Capital (lead) | $15M | $98M | Berlin-based Stark, founded in 2024 by Florian Seibel, develops AI-powered unmanned strike drones and autonomous systems for NATO allies and partner militaries, including Ukraine. Its flagship product, OWE-V Virtus, features vertical take-off, X-shaped wings, a 5kg warhead, and onboard AI for targeting and navigation. Stark focuses on software-defined platforms enabling operators to control multiple systems, emphasizing modularity and rapid deployability for modern battlefields. Stark raised $62 million in a funding round led by Sequoia Capital, with participation from Peter Thiel, achieving a $500 million valuation and bringing total funding past $100 million. The capital will accelerate production of the Virtus UAV, enhance AI R&D for targeting and navigation, expand testing in Ukraine, and support global offices and potential local production. The company recently acquired Pleno for autonomous navigation and drone swarming tech and opened a UK drone production facility. Stark positions itself in Europe's growing defense tech sector amid geopolitical tensions and the Ukraine conflict, differentiating from dual-use peers like Quantum Systems by focusing exclusively on weaponized systems for rapid, scalable production. |
Who has invested in STARK?
12 investors have backed STARK across its funding rounds, including Sequoia Capital, Founders Fund, Project A Ventures, NATO Innovation Fund, Doepfner capital and 8VC.
Lead investors include Founders Fund and Sequoia Capital.
STARK Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Lead | Oct 2024 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Aug 2025 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Aug 2025 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Aug 2025 | ||
| 2 | Lead | Feb 2026 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Jun 2026 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Aug 2025 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Aug 2025 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Aug 2025 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Jun 2026 | ||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all 12 STARK investors. Start Free Trial | ||||
Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples
Sign up to see data on 350K+ funding rounds and disclosed revenue and EBITDA valuation multiples, from seed, through growth stage, to pre-IPO.
Start Free TrialAcquisitions by STARK
STARK has acquired 1 company to date.
Last acquisition by STARK was on July 15th 2025. STARK acquired PLENO for undisclosed valuation.
Latest Acquisitions by STARK
| Description | PLENO is a Berlin-based developer of an end-to-end platform for autonomous drone agents. The system trains, tests, and deploys agents in simulation environments, targeting dual-use applications in defense and commercial sectors across Europe. |
| HQ Country | |
| HQ City | Berlin |
| Deal Date | 15 Jul 2025 |
| Valuation | undisclosed |
| EV/Revenue | |
| EV/EBITDA | |
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all STARK acquisitions and their M&A valuation multiples. Start Free Trial | |
STARK Competitors
STARK competitors include listed companies like Avic (Chengdu) Uas, Bharat Dynamics, AECC Aero-Engine Controls and CSSC Offshore & Marine, and private ones like Mach Industries and Chaos.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publicly listed | $450M | $19M | $4.3B | - | ||
| Publicly listed | $252M | $35M | $4.4B | 11.4x | ||
| Publicly listed | $771M | $150M | $3.8B | 4.2x | ||
| Private | - | - | $3.7B | - | ||
| Private | - | - | $4.5B | - | ||
| Publicly listed | $3.1B | $212M | $4.6B | 1.1x |
STARK Public Comps
STARK is still privately-owned, but its public comps include Avic (Chengdu) Uas, AECC Aero-Engine Controls, Bharat Dynamics, CSSC Offshore & Marine, Karman Space & Defense, Jiangxi Hongdu Aviation, Addsino Co., QinetiQ, Amentum and Guizhou Space Appliance.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $450M | $19M | 8.6x | - | 202.0x | - | |||
| $771M | $150M | 4.3x | 4.2x | 22.4x | - | |||
| $252M | $35M | 15.5x | 11.4x | 112.2x | 82.6x | |||
| $3.1B | $212M | 1.0x | 1.1x | 15.1x | - | |||
| $472M | $120M | 11.7x | 8.3x | 45.9x | 27.8x | |||
| $1.1B | $22M | 2.9x | 2.6x | 149.3x | - | |||
| $373M | ($167M) | 9.4x | - | (20.9x) | - | |||
| $2.6B | $391M | 1.4x | 1.4x | 9.3x | 7.9x | |||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all STARK competitors and their valuation data. Start Free Trial | ||||||||
Common questions about STARK
| When was STARK founded? | STARK was founded in 2024. |
| Where is STARK headquartered? | STARK is headquartered in Berlin, Germany. |
| Is STARK publicly listed? | No, STARK is a private, VC-backed company. |
| What is STARK's valuation? | STARK was last valued at $4.1B in its undisclosed-stage round in June 2026. |
| How much funding has STARK raised? | STARK has raised $659M across 4 funding rounds. |
| What was STARK's last funding round? | STARK's last funding round was a $582M undisclosed-stage round in June 2026, led by Founders Fund and Sequoia Capital. |
| Who are STARK's investors? | STARK's investors include Sequoia Capital, NATO Innovation Fund, Doepfner capital, Project A Ventures, Founders Fund, Air Street Capital, Peter Thiel, 8VC, Thiel Capital, 201 Ventures and 2 others. |
| Which companies are comparable to STARK? | Companies comparable to STARK include Avic (Chengdu) Uas, Bharat Dynamics, AECC Aero-Engine Controls, Mach Industries, Chaos and CSSC Offshore & Marine. |
| How many companies has STARK acquired? | STARK has acquired 1 company, including PLENO. |
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