Defense AI company Shield AI announced it has completed a $2.0 billion funding round, with its valuation jumping from $5.3 billion to $12.7 billion, a gain of 140%. The round was led by a major PE player, signaling a shift in the structure of defense technology investment. Shield AI and companies like Anduril have all achieved substantial valuation increases, indicating that the market’s outlook for defense AI firms has shifted toward evaluating platform potential. The U.S. military has also set AI and autonomous systems as a separate budget category, further driving the flow of defense technology funding.

Gate News bot alert: According to Gate's official announcement Gate Contract Stocks section has launched VCX perpetual contract live trading, settled in USDT, supporting 1-20x long and short operations with leverage ratio selectable at the time of placing orders. VCX(Fundrise Innovation Fund) is a publicly traded venture capital fund listed on the New York Stock Exchange, with a portfolio covering top-tier private technology and AI companies including OpenAI, Anthropic, Databricks, SpaceX, Anduril, Ramp, and more.

Erebor Bank, co-founded by Anduril CEO Palmer Luckey, has completed a $350 million funding round after receiving FDIC approval, with a valuation of $4.35 billion. The bank is expected to launch next year, serving innovative economic sectors such as Virtual Money, AI, and manufacturing.