Defense Metrics Fundraising Data Methodology

Defense Metrics' Fundraising Database attempts to offer a comprehensive view of fundraising rounds, M&A transactions, and other interested data points of the defense tech industry. Our goal is to provide a complete and transparent perspective of the industry.

Our process includes rigorous analysis of press releases, company filings, news reports, and venture fund portfolios.

As the landscape of defense technology continues to evolve, we remain committed to refining and expanding our dataset, ensuring that our users have access to the most up-to-date and accurate information available.

Which Companies Are Included?

The Defense Metrics database includes a wide range of companies in the defense technology sector, covering advanced tech firms, cybersecurity providers, defense contractors, and critical infrastructure entities. It also features service-based organizations and key players in intelligence, surveillance, and military-grade innovations.

To ensure accuracy and relevance, we exclude companies with only minor ties to defense or where security and defense are not central to their mission. All entries reflect the most current names, accounting for rebrands, mergers, or strategic shifts.

Definitions

Understanding the definitions behind our categorization system is essential for clarity and consistency. By clearly defining each category, we hope to provide a framework that ensures accurate classification of companies based on their primary focus and contributions to defense.

Dates

Our dates are based on when a fundraising round is publicly disclosed. It’s important to note that this can sometimes differ from the actual closing date of the round, as the information can sometimes be private. Furthermore, at times fundraising rounds do not publish the exact date. When this occurs we will use the following dates:

• If only the month and year are known, we assign the first day of that month (March 2025 is recorded as 3/1/2025).
• If only the year is available, we use the first day in that year (2025 is recorded as 1/1/2025).

Source

The source is a link to the announcement of the fundraising round. We aim to use sources directly from the company whenever possible. If an announcement from the company is not available, we will prioritize a link from an investor in the round. When primary sources are not available, we will utilize trusted news outlets.

Type (Stage)

We categorize the "type" based on the exact funding stage as reported in the source (e.g. seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, etc). If the type is non-normal we will use categorizations such as “undisclosed,” “strategic,” “extension,” etc.

Stage

The “stage” is used to represent a higher classification of the phase the fundraising round represents:

• Seed: Includes both Pre-seed and Seed investment stages.

• Early Stage Venture: Equity investments after Seed but before Series C.

• Late Stage Venture: Equity investments from Series C up to, but excluding, an IPO.

• Miscellaneous: Fundraising rounds outside the above, such as strategic investments.

Amount

We record all funding amounts in USD. If the funding round is in a different currency that USD, we convert the amount to USD based on the exchange rate of the day of the announcement.

Note: We only include amounts based on what is reported in the announcement. For example, if a company reports that they “expect to raise,” this amount will not be included. If we are unable to verify the amount raised, the amount for the fundraising round will be included as $0. While not ideal, we feel it is the most accurate way to represent the data.

Valuation (coming soon)

The post-money valuation when the information is available.

Investors

Our goal is to provide a thorough list of investment funds that participate in every funding round. It is important to note that fundraising round announcements do not always include every investor that participated in the round and will therefore lead to a shortfall in the data.

Data Challenges

Due to the private nature of venture fundraising deals, our dataset is constrained by what is publicly available. While our goal at Defense Metrics is to list 100% of fundraising rounds with every data point available, there will be inherent holes due to the nature of the process:

• Availability of data: It is common for smaller companies or those in stealth to keep their initial fundraising rounds private. As a result, early-stage data for defense tech companies can at times be under-represented.

• Private Investors: Some investment firms may choose to not be listed in a fundraising announcement or will at times be listed in a press release as “additional investors.”

• Delays: Fundraising rounds are often closed weeks to months prior to the announcement to the public.

Corrections

Defense Metrics is committed to providing the most complete and accurate data on defense sector fundraising. We continuously monitor, update, and refine our dataset to ensure its accuracy. If you would like your investment firm or company’s information included or updated in our database, please contact us.

Funding Rounds

You'll find below the complete list of metrics and definitions available in our Funding Rounds screener.

Investment Funds

You'll find below the complete list of metrics and definitions available in our Funding Rounds screener.