SEATTLE/WASHINGTON : Technology startup Epirus, which is competing with Boeing Co and others to supply drone-zapping weapons to the U.S. military, has raised $200 million in a private transaction that lifts its valuation to $1.35 billion, the company told Reuters.
Last month, Iraq's air defenses shot down two explosive-laden drones as they approached the Ain al-Asad air base, which hosts U.S. forces, west of Baghdad. The proliferation of cheap drones has raised the need to find an alternative to traditional aerial defenses, such as surface-to-air missiles, which can cost $3 million apiece.
Raytheon Technologies Corp and KBR Inc unit Kord Technologies last year won a $123 million contract to supply the U.S. Army with 50-kilowatt lasers mounted to eight-wheeled Stryker combat vehicles.