Marlinspike

ActiveVenture Capital

Updated: Jan 6, 2026 ·

About

We invest in companies with pioneering technologies addressing national security needs and possessing massive commercial markets.

Financial History

Total Raised

N/A

Valuation

N/A

Investments Made

Date	Company	Round	Lead Investor(s)	Co-Investor(s)
Oct 1, 2025	Base Power	$1.0B Series C	—	8090 Industries, 8VC, Addition, Afore Capital, Altimeter Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Contrary Capital, CRV, Dragonfly Capital Partners, DST Global, Felicis Ventures, Founders Fund, J2 Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Kohala Ventures, Lux Capital, M12, NFX, Open AI Startup Fund, Ravelin Capital, Sequoia Capital, Thrive Capital, Trust Ventures, Verified Capital, Village Global, XYZ Venture Capital, Elad Gil, Eric Futoran, Larry Braitman, Lawrence Braitman, Ron Pragides
Aug 1, 2025	Eight Sleep	$100.0M Series D	—	8090 Industries, Afore Capital, Array Ventures, AV8 Ventures, C2 Investment, Felicis Ventures, FirstHand Alliance, Founders Fund, Greycroft, Harrison Metal, Investo, Lux Capital, M12, NFX, Plug & Play Ventures, RX3 Growth Partners, True Ventures, UpHonest Capital, VZVC, Xfund, Y Combinator, Eric Futoran, Patrick S. Chung, Ron Pragides, Steve Norall
Jul 1, 2025	Varda	$190.0M Series C	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, Abstract Ventures, Afore Capital, Also Capital, Alumni Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Ballistic Ventures, Bedrock Capital, Caffeinated Capital, Champion Hill Labs, Cubit Capital, Daft Capital, DCM, Drive Capital, E1 Ventures, Floodgate, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Goat Capital, Khosla Ventures, LGF, Lux Capital, Next47, Outliers Fund, Paradox Capital, Prime Movers Lab, Rabben Hood Ventures, Saga, Sequoia Capital, Stellar Capital, The Hit Forge, Virginia Venture Partners, XYZ Venture Capital, Y Combinator, Austin Ogilvie, Emil Lee, Fanny Surjana, Gokul Rajaram, Joao Otavio Oliverio, Joshua Reeves, Justin Mateen, Louis Beryl, Mark Cuban, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Natasha Ahmed, Richard Cooperstein, Sahin Boydas, Sohila Zadran, Sri Batchu, Stephen Romanoff, Thomas Tull, Vineet Jain, Vivek Patel, William Miller, Zachary Hargreaves
Jun 1, 2025	Nominal	$75.0M Series B	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, Kevin Hartz, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Bedrock Capital, Champion Hill Labs, DCM, E1 Ventures, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Roni Hiranand, LGF, Lux Capital, Next47, Obvious Ventures, Rabben Hood Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Sixth Street, Starship Ventures, XYZ Venture Capital, Fanny Surjana, Jeff Seibert, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Richard Burton, Richard Cooperstein, Stephen Romanoff, Thomas Tull, Tony Xu, William Miller
May 1, 2025	Upscale	$6.0M Seed	—	8090 Industries, Afore Capital, Felicis Ventures, Founders Fund, Lux Capital, M12, NFX, Eric Futoran, Ron Pragides
Apr 1, 2025	Base Power	$200.0M Series B	—	8090 Industries, Addition, Afore Capital, Altimeter Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Contrary Capital, Felicis Ventures, Founders Fund, Lux Capital, M12, NFX, Thrive Capital, Trust Ventures, Elad Gil, Eric Futoran, Ron Pragides
Mar 1, 2025	Tera AI	$8.0M Seed	—	8090 Industries, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Bond, Felicis Ventures, Founders Fund, Hanabi Capital, iNovia Capital, Lux Capital, M12, NFX, Polychain Capital, Mike Kerns, The Hit Forge, UpHonest Capital, VU Venture Partners, Y Combinator, Ameet Patel, Amit Agarwal, Audrey Gelman, Conor Bronsdon, Emmett Shear, Eric Futoran, Hari Lakshmanan, Kenji Niwa, Mark Pincus, Ron Pragides, Yoshua Bengio
Sep 1, 2024	Luthor	$500K Seed	—	Drive Capital, Otherwise Fund, Sunset Ventures, Sweater Ventures, TQ Ventures, Trajectory Ventures, Tribe Capital, Y Combinator
Apr 1, 2024	Nominal	$8.0M Seed	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, Kevin Hartz, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Bedrock Capital, Champion Hill Labs, DCM, E1 Ventures, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Roni Hiranand, LGF, Lux Capital, Next47, Rabben Hood Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Starship Ventures, XYZ Venture Capital, Fanny Surjana, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Richard Burton, Richard Cooperstein, Stephen Romanoff, Thomas Tull, William Miller
Jan 1, 2024	UpSmith	$5.0M Seed	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, Afore Capital, AirAngels, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Asymmetric Capital Partners, Bedrock Capital, Champion Hill Labs, E1 Ventures, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, LGF, Rabben Hood Ventures, XYZ Venture Capital, Anne Wojcicki, Fanny Surjana, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Richard Cooperstein, Stephen Romanoff, Thomas Tull, William Miller
Jan 1, 2024	Coris	$4.0M Seed	—	8090 Industries, Active Capital, Afore Capital, Alchemy Ventures, Alt Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, ATX Venture Partners, Canaan Partners, Comal Ventures, Convective Capital, CRV, Felicis Ventures, Founder Collective, Founders Fund, Goat Capital, Greenoaks Capital, Haun Ventures, Indicator Ventures, Infinity Ventures Crypto, Lux Capital, M12, Magma Partners, Next Coast Ventures, NFX, Picus Capital, Polychain Capital, Precursor Ventures, Red Swan Ventures, Sequoia Capital, The Hit Forge, Amit Agarwal, Balaji Srinivasan, Brian Sugar, Chase Gilbert, Eric Futoran, Rajiv Bala, Sahin Boydas, Vivek Patel
Dec 1, 2023	Armada	$55.0M Series A	—	8090 Industries, Afore Capital, Alumni Ventures, Felicis Ventures, Founders Fund, Lux Capital, M12, NFX, Pareto Holdings, Eric Futoran, Kirill Silkin, Ron Pragides
Dec 1, 2023	OurSky	$10.0M Seed	—	Drive Capital, Sunset Ventures, Sweater Ventures, TQ Ventures
Oct 1, 2023	1UP	$3.0M Seed	—	8-Bit Capital, Accomplice VC, Drive Capital, Engineering Capital, Sunset Ventures, Sweater Ventures, TQ Ventures, Upfront Ventures
Sep 1, 2023	Kindo	$7.0M Seed	—	1435 Capital Management, Blockchain Capital, C2 Investment, Crosscut Ventures, Crystal Huang, Shawn Modarresi, Marcy Venture Partners, Rebel Fund, Root Ventures, Slack Fund, Suli, Sunset Ventures, Sweater Ventures, TQ Ventures, Y Combinator, Ben Porterfield, Furqan Rydhan, Gabriel Jarrosson, Hubert Thieblot, Jay Z, Kulveer Taggar
Jun 1, 2023	Charm Industrial	$100.0M Series B	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Bedrock Capital, Champion Hill Labs, E1 Ventures, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, LGF, Outliers Fund, Rabben Hood Ventures, XYZ Venture Capital, Fanny Surjana, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Richard Cooperstein, Stephen Romanoff, Thomas Tull, William Miller
Mar 1, 2023	Mythic	$13.0M Venture Round	—	10D, 20VC, 8090 Industries, Afore Capital, AIX Ventures, Amadeus Capital Partners, Atomico, Atreides Management, Blockchain Capital, Buckley Ventures, Darren Liccardo, Catapult Ventures (catapult.vc), DCVC (Data Collective), Dell Technologies Capital, DX Ventures, Jenny Fielding, Scott Hartley, Felicis Ventures, Founders Fund, Gradient Ventures, Erik Nordlander, Hitachi Ventures, Kickstart Fund, Lux Capital, M12, NFX, Oak HC/FT, Pantera Capital, Pareto Holdings, Pioneer Fund, Polychain Capital, Sequoia Capital, Sequoia Capital China, Summit Partners, Winklevoss Capital, Amjad Masad, Cameron Teitelman, Danny Akerman, Eric Futoran, Greg Brockman, Joi Ito, Paul Holland, Peter Bell, Ron Pragides, Shane Neman, Spencer Kimball
Feb 1, 2023	Vitally	$30.0M Series B	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Bedrock Capital, Champion Hill Labs, E1 Ventures, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, LGF, Next47, Outliers Fund, Rabben Hood Ventures, XYZ Venture Capital, Fanny Surjana, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Richard Cooperstein, Stephen Romanoff, Thomas Tull, William Miller
Jan 1, 2023	Blues	$32.0M Series A	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Bedrock Capital, Champion Hill Labs, E1 Ventures, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Greylock, LGF, Outliers Fund, Rabben Hood Ventures, The General Partnership, XYZ Venture Capital, Dylan Field, Fanny Surjana, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Richard Cooperstein, Stephen Romanoff, Thomas Tull, William Miller
Jan 1, 2023	Capella Space	$60.0M Venture Round	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Bedrock Capital, Champion Hill Labs, E1 Ventures, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, LGF, Outliers Fund, Rabben Hood Ventures, XYZ Venture Capital, Fanny Surjana, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Richard Cooperstein, Stephen Romanoff, William Miller
Oct 1, 2022	UpSmith	$3.0M Seed	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, Afore Capital, AirAngels, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Asymmetric Capital Partners, Bedrock Capital, Champion Hill Labs, E1 Ventures, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, LGF, Rabben Hood Ventures, XYZ Venture Capital, Anne Wojcicki, Fanny Surjana, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Richard Cooperstein, Stephen Romanoff, Thomas Tull, William Miller
Jun 1, 2022	CloudNC	$45.0M Series B	—	Ascension Ventures, Atomico, Balderton Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Episode 1 Ventures, G2VP, Tom Hulme, Hercules Capital, Insight Partners, Lockheed Martin Ventures, Prosperity7 Ventures, Damien Lane, Jeff Seibert, Kamiar Kordari, Lev Ekster, Somdip Dey, Wayne Chang
Mar 1, 2022	Justpoint	$7.0M Seed	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, 9Yards Capital, Afore Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Antiportfolio Ventures, Basecase Capital, Bedrock Capital, Champion Hill Labs, Daffy, Divergent Capital, E1 Ventures, Factorial, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Hoxton Ventures, LGF, Lightbank, Long Journey Ventures, Outliers Fund, Pareto Holdings, Rabben Hood Ventures, Right Side Capital Management, rocketship.vc, Shaan's All Access Fund, Howard Lindzon, Stellation Capital, Suli, Symbolic Capital, Team Ignite Ventures, Tiger Global Management, Twelve Below, Uncork Capital, Weekend Fund, XYZ Venture Capital, Akshay Kothari, Ali Moiz, Alvin Tse, Chris Smoak, Evan Cheng, Fanny Surjana, George Burke, Hannah Bronfman, Jeremy Cai, Kunal Shah, Manik Gupta, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Richard Cooperstein, Scott Banister, Scott Belsky, Shamir Karkal, Stephen Romanoff, Thomas Tull, Victor Jacobsson, Vivek Garipalli, William Miller, Zachary Hargreaves
Oct 1, 2021	Hedron	$18.0M Series A	—	Alumni Ventures, Amicus Capital, Flybridge Capital Partners, Founders Co-op, Kaszek Ventures, Lockheed Martin Ventures, monashees, Moonshots Capital, NextView Ventures, Practical Venture Capital, Snowpoint Ventures, Space Capital, The Engine, Western Technology Investment, Dharmesh Shah, Don Hutchison, Rich Miner, Roger Ehrenberg
Oct 1, 2021	Hex Technologies	$16.0M Series A	—	01 Advisors, 11k Ventures, 8VC, Afore Capital, AirAngels, Allison Pickens Ventures, formerly The New Normal Fund, Amplify Partners, Andreessen Horowitz, Anorak Ventures, Bedrock Capital, Champion Hill Labs, Concrete Rose Capital, Cornerstone Venture Partners, E1 Ventures, Elron Ventures, Essence VC, Felicis Ventures, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Gradient Ventures, LGF, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Next Play Ventures, Operator Collective, Outliers Fund, Predictive VC, Rabben Hood Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Serena Ventures, Sinai Ventures, SoftBank Investment Advisers, Theory Ventures, Trajectory Ventures, XYZ Venture Capital, Y Combinator, Zeal Capital Partners, Adam Gross, Allison Pickens (Allison Pickens Ventures), Charles Zedlewski, Eric Wu, Fanny Surjana, Gregory Waldorf, James Beshara, John Riccitiello, Mattia Astori, Mircea Pasoi, Ollen Douglass, Richard Cooperstein, Scott Belsky, Stephen Romanoff, Thomas Tull, William Miller

Financial History

Total Raised

N/A

Valuation

N/A

Leadership Team

Key people at Marlinspike.

Mislav Tolusic

Leadership Team

Key people at Marlinspike.

Mislav Tolusic

Deep Dive

High-Level Overview

Marlinspike is a national security–focused venture capital firm that invests in dual-use technologies—innovative startups whose products serve both U.S. government and commercial markets. Its mission is to back pioneering companies in aerospace, artificial intelligence, autonomy, robotics, and cybersecurity that are critical to national security while also possessing the potential for venture-scale commercial success. The firm emphasizes not just capital, but deep operational and strategic support, helping founders navigate the complex landscape of defense procurement, government partnerships, and scaling in high-stakes environments.

Marlinspike’s investment philosophy centers on the dual-use imperative: technology must solve hard national security problems *and* address large, scalable commercial markets. This approach allows portfolio companies to achieve sustainable growth beyond government contracts alone. By focusing on sectors like AI/ML, space, autonomy, and cyber, Marlinspike plays a pivotal role in accelerating the adoption of cutting-edge commercial technologies into the defense ecosystem, effectively bridging Silicon Valley–style innovation with Washington, D.C.–level policy and procurement.

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Origin Story

Marlinspike was founded in 2020 (with its flagship fund, Marlinspike Disruptive Technology Fund I, launched in 2022) by a team of operators and investors with deep roots in national security, defense technology, and venture capital. The firm is led by co-managing partners including Mislav Tolusic (Co-Managing Partner and CIO) and Neil Keegan, supported by a team that includes former senior intelligence officials, military officers, and experienced investors.

The firm emerged from a clear conviction: that the next generation of national security advantage will be driven by commercial innovation, not just traditional defense primes. Many of the founding team members had firsthand experience inside U.S. government agencies (including the CIA and DoD), major defense contractors, and private equity, giving them a rare vantage point on where government needs and commercial opportunity intersect. This background shaped Marlinspike’s identity as a firm that doesn’t just write checks, but actively helps founders build companies that can win in both the Pentagon and the private sector.

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Core Differentiators

Dual-Use, Venture-Scale Focus

Insists that portfolio companies solve real national security problems *and* have a credible path to massive commercial markets.
Avoids “check-the-box” government tech; instead backs companies capable of venture-scale disruption.

Private Equity–Style Operating Discipline

Takes a hands-on, value-add approach post-investment, focusing on:
Locking in recurring revenue (especially through government contracts and OTAs).
Strengthening the technology moat and product roadmap.
Operational scaling and team building.
Applies private equity rigor to early-stage defense tech, helping founders transition from R&D to revenue.

Unmatched Government and Defense Network

Deep relationships with U.S. government agencies, defense primes (e.g., Lockheed, Raytheon, Northrop), and national labs.
Leverages this ecosystem to accelerate pilot programs, contracts, and integrations for portfolio companies.
Strong connections to Capitol Hill, intelligence committees, and defense innovation units (like NSIN).

Strategic Sourcing and Market Thesis–Driven Investing

Actively hunts for opportunities based on thematic theses in aerospace, AI, autonomy, and cyber.
Complements outbound sourcing with strong inbound flow from founders seeking a partner who understands both defense and venture.
Portfolio includes high-profile names like Anduril, Voyager Space, Rendered.ai, and Elroy Air.

Focus on Talent and Team Quality

Prioritizes balanced teams with strong technical founders and experienced operators.
Looks for founders who can execute on 12–24 month technical sprints (e.g., prototypes, demos, deployments) rather than just long-term vision.

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Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Marlinspike sits at the epicenter of a major shift: the convergence of commercial technology and national defense. As great power competition intensifies and threats in space, cyber, and autonomous systems grow, the U.S. government increasingly relies on agile, venture-backed startups rather than legacy contractors alone. Marlinspike is riding this trend by backing the “new defense industrial base”—companies building AI-driven autonomy, next-gen space systems, and cyber resilience tools that are as relevant to enterprises as they are to the military.

The timing is critical. With rising defense budgets, expanded use of OTAs, and initiatives like NSIN and AFWERX, the government is actively lowering barriers for startups. Marlinspike helps founders navigate this environment, turning technical innovation into durable, revenue-generating businesses. In doing so, the firm is helping reshape how defense technology is developed, funded, and deployed—accelerating the pace of innovation across aerospace, AI, and critical infrastructure.

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Quick Take & Future Outlook

Marlinspike is poised to become a defining firm in the next era of defense technology investing. As dual-use becomes table stakes for national security startups, the firm’s disciplined, operationally intensive model will increasingly differentiate it from generalist VCs dabbling in defense. Expect Marlinspike to double down on sectors like AI/ML for autonomy, space logistics, and data-enabled manufacturing, while continuing to back founders who can move fast and think big.

Looking ahead, the firm’s influence will likely grow beyond capital: as a talent magnet, ecosystem builder, and trusted advisor to both founders and government stakeholders. In a world where technology is the new frontline, Marlinspike isn’t just funding startups—it’s helping build the foundation of America’s long-term technological edge.

Sources