Shield AI’s autonomous drones are deployed on front lines from Ukraine to the Middle East. Brandon Tseng, a former Navy SEAL and Shield AI cofounder, started the company with his brother Ryan after two Afghanistan deployments where robots gathered intelligence more safely. Defense technology was previously shunned in Silicon Valley over concerns about autonomous weapons, but the company is now valued at nearly $13 billion. Tseng describes defense tech as effectively nonexistent in 2015 and recounts an Andreessen Horowitz board member’s remark that investing in Shield AI was investing in a “dumbest idea.”
"You started Shield AI with your brother Ryan a little over a decade ago after serving as a Navy SEAL officer. You deployed twice in Afghanistan and saw firsthand how robots could gather intel more safely. For a while, though, defense tech was kind of shunned, particularly in Silicon Valley, because of concerns about autonomous weapons. That's changed. Shield AI is valued at almost $13 billion."
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