Defense Tech Startup Antares Scores $470M in Series C Funding

The round also saw participation from Point72 Ventures, Shine Capital, Industrious Ventures, and others.

The company will use the funding to accelerate development of its nuclear power systems, including launching the Mark-1 electricity-producing reactor in 2027 and starting initial deployments for defense customers in 2028.

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The company's microreactors are built to operate safely and independently for years without needing to be refueled, providing a reliable source of continuous power. Instead of focusing on a one time demonstration, the company is designing its reactors for long term, real world use where dependable energy is critical.

Antares develops microreactors designed to provide reliable power for defense and other critical missions where continuous electricity is essential.

The company aims to strengthen energy security for U.S. military bases, many of which rely on aging commercial power grids. It is also working to meet the U.S. government's goal of operating a nuclear reactor at a domestic military base by September 2028.

"On June 4th, we won the race to criticality, and now we’ve shifted to the race to commercialization," said Jordan Bramble, CEO and co-founder of Antares. "The military has been a partner to us every step of the way. We’ve secured firm contracts to build reactors. To do that, we’re announcing $470M of equity and debt to invest one-to-one with the taxpayer in bringing this technology to commercial scale.

"Jordan and the Antares team just achieved the first private advanced reactor criticality in decades with a factory-built microreactor,” said Alana Palmedo, managing partner, Paradigm. “Now they transition to a new era: The scaled deployment of microreactors that can operate reliably, safely, and economically for years on U.S. military bases. Paradigm is thrilled to back this team as they help to restore energy dominance in the U.S."

About Antares

Founded in 2023 by Jordan Bramble and Julia DeWahl, Antares is a nuclear energy company developing compact microreactor's for defense, and space missions, providing safe and reliable power where traditional energy sources aren't practical. The company reached it's first major reactor mile-stone in 2026 through the United States Department of Energys Reactor Pilot Program.

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