How a Gen Zer built a $3.7 billion defense tech startup backed by Sequoia
Source: Fortune ·
Ethan Thornton launched Mach Industries at 19. Three years later, the startup is raising hundreds of millions and manufacturing autonomous defense systems.
From the source
Hi, it’s Preston Fore, in for Allie. Earlier this month, defense tech firm Mach Industries raised $600 million in a Series C extension at a $3.7 billion valuation. That’s more than double the $1.8 billion valuation Mach reached just three months earlier when it raised its initial $300 million Series C led by Ribbit Capital, Infinite Capital, Bedrock Capital, and Sequoia Capital. But perhaps more striking than the pace of the raises is who’s leading them: Mach, which builds autonomous defense systems, is run by a 22-year-old. Founder and CEO Ethan Thornton launched Mach in 2023 at 19, after developing an interest in defense as a teenager. Since then, he’s built the company around a willingness to move quickly, take risks, and adapt as its technology and the broader defense industry evolve. “You’re never going to know everything, especially when you’re starting young, and you shouldn’t expect to,” Thornton told Fortune. “If you wait until you have all the answers, you’ll probably never…