Investor Profile: Shield Capital — Thesis, Cheque Size & How to Apply

Learning how to get funding from Shield Capital means learning the language of dual use. This Silicon Valley firm backs frontier technology that serves both commercial customers and national security customers. If your product only works for a government buyer, or only works for a consumer, it is probably not a Shield Capital company. If it works for both, you are in its sweet spot.

Thesis: commercial technology meets national security

Shield Capital describes itself as a venture capital firm that supports innovators building solutions for commercial and government customers to secure the future. Its thesis is that the most important technologies of the next decade, in artificial intelligence, autonomy, cybersecurity and space, will be built by commercial companies first, and that companies which successfully serve both markets tend to grow very quickly.

Sectors and stages

The firm invests in cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, autonomy and space, at the convergence of commercial technology and national security. It focuses on early-stage companies, from seed through Series B, in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Israel. Founders should come with a credible commercial market as well as a credible government use case, and evidence for both.

Fund size and cheque size

Shield Capital Fund I closed at $186 million in October 2023. A final close size for a second fund was not publicly confirmed in the sources read for this profile, so it is recorded here as not publicly disclosed rather than guessed. Directory listings put its cheque range at roughly $1 million to $10 million, but treat that as indicative, not an official published ticket size. The firm was founded in 2021 and launched its inaugural fund in March 2022.

Notable portfolio

Its early portfolio, named in its own fund launch announcement, includes Resilience Insurance, Hawkeye 360, Elroy Air, GoSecure, Authentic8 and Rebellion Defense. Later portfolio names tracked by venture databases include Albedo, Apex, Armada, Vannevar Labs, Overwatch Imaging, Nexla and Starfish Space.

Partners and team

Shield Capital was founded by Philip Bilden and Raj Shah, both managing partners. Shah previously led the Defense Innovation Unit, the US Department of Defense organisation that brings commercial technology into the military, an experience that shaped the firm's strategy. Its National Security Advisory Board has included former Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, former National Security Advisor Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Adm. James Stavridis, former National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency director Letitia Long, and former Acting Secretary of the Navy Sean Stackley.

Programs run, credits and perks

Shield Capital runs no public accelerator, no credits programme and no published perks catalogue. Its value-add is advisory and access: national security advisers who serve on boards or counsel founders on working with the Department of Defense and the federal government. That guidance is the product, and also a filter: if you do not want government customers, this is the wrong firm.

How to apply for funding

No public application portal for Shield Capital was found in the sources read for this profile. The firm's official site, at shieldcap.com, is the route for contact, and founders are best served by a warm introduction through a portfolio founder, a national security contact or another venture investor, with a crisp dual-use story: the commercial customer, the government customer, the technical proof, and the procurement path.