ETHAN THORNTON
FOUNDER/CEO
MACH INDUSTRIES
WHY: Founded Huntington Beach defense startup Mach Industries as a teen in 2023. Aims to make nimbler, smarter next generation weapons for the U.S. military.
IN THE NEWS: Defense company in March said it will make military drones with HevenDrones, a Florida-based company with a R&D center in Israel. Production will start this year. Awarded also in March a U.S. Army contract to develop a vertical takeoff cruise missile. In talks to raise $100M of venture funding in a deal led by Bedrock Capital and Khosla Ventures, according to PitchBook. That raise would put the company’s post-money valuation at $470M.
NOTABLE: A Thiel Fellow who dropped out of MIT at age 19 to start Mach. Founded the firm in Texas and later moved its HQ to Orange County. The Anduril competitor has 119 employees. Most are based in Huntington Beach, but some are located internationally and in Texas and Washington D.C., according to the company. In October 2023, the company raised $84.1M of Series A venture funding in a deal led by Bedrock Capital and Sequoia Capital. The funding brought the company’s total raise to nearly $100M, according to PitchBook.
QUOTABLE: “The goal is to really build out a worldwide decentralized manufacturing network.”
