Saildrone
Autonomous wind-powered ocean drone fleet for maritime intelligence, defense, and ocean data
defense
📍 Alameda, CA
Founded 2012
Current Valuation
$575M
as of 2024-Q4
PRIVATE
Saildrone operates a global fleet of unmanned, wind-and-solar-powered ocean drones used for maritime domain awareness, hurricane research, illegal-fishing detection, and bathymetric surveys. Founded by British engineer Richard Jenkins (who used the same wing-sail tech to set the wind-powered land-speed record), the company now partners with Palantir and holds active US Navy and NOAA contracts. Revenue grew 231% to $43M in FY24. A $60M strategic round in September 2025 was led by Denmark's export and investment fund, financing European fleet expansion.
Company Profile
Last Round
Strategic — $60M (Sep 2025) · Lead: EIFO (Export and Investment Fund of Denmark)
Founders & Key People
Richard Jenkins
Investors
EIFO · BMNT Partners · Capricorn Investment Group · Lux Capital · Social Capital · Tribe Capital · Crowley Maritime · Palantir (partnership)
Products
- Voyager USV (mid-range)
- Explorer USV (long-range)
- Surveyor USV (deep-sea bathymetric)
- Maritime domain awareness data
- Ocean weather and climate data
Competitors
Ocean Aero · Liquid Robotics (Boeing) · L3Harris autonomous maritime · Anduril Dive-LD
DefenseMaritimeClimate TechAutonomous Systems
Private-company numbers are not real-time. Reflects publicly disclosed valuations from press releases, news reports, and tender offers as of 2024-Q4. Refreshed quarterly.