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Shield AI — Startup ProfileAI pilots and autonomous aircraft — Hivemind software that flies aircraft on their ownHQ: San Diego, CA, United States | Founded: 2015 | Employees: ~1,000 (2026, est.) | Stage: Late Stage VC (Series G) | Website: https://shield.aiAboutShield AI was founded in 2015 in San Diego by Ryan Tseng (CEO, who previously founded WiPower, acquired by Qualcomm), Brandon Tseng (President, a former Navy SEAL officer who served seven years), and Andrew Reiter (CTO, ex-Google). The company's founding mission was to build AI pilots — software that lets aircraft operate autonomously without GPS, datalinks, or human pilots — inspired by the founders' conviction that the future of air combat is machine-speed and software-defined.Its core product is Hivemind, an AI pilot stack that has achieved a series of world firsts: the first autonomous multi-aircraft swarm flight, the first AI-piloted F-16 (flying the X-62 VISTA with the U.S. Air Force in 2024), and operation aboard platforms from GA-ASI's MQ-20 Avenger to Kratos drones. Hivemind EntKey Metrics

Latest Valuation: $12.7B

Last Round: $2B Series G

Total Funding: $2B+ (incl. $500M preferred)

Flagship Product: Hivemind AI pilot + V-BAT

Founded: 2015

Headcount: ~1,000 (est.)

Funding Rounds

Round: $165M (2022-06-09) — Undisclosed (equity + debt)

Round: $300M (2024-09-01) — Undisclosed

Round: $240M (2025-03-06) — Undisclosed

Round: $2B (2026-03-01) — Advent International, JPMorgan Security and Resiliency Initiative

Key People

Ryan Tseng

Brandon Tseng

Andrew Reiter

Key Competitors

Anduril —

General Atomics (GA-ASI) —

Kratos Defense —

Skydio —

Timeline Highlights

2026-03-01: Series G: $2B at $12.7B

2025-03-06: F-1 Round: $240M at $5.3B

2024-07-01: $198M Coast Guard Contract

2024-05: First AI-Piloted F-16 Flight

2022-06-09: Series E: $165M at $2.3B