Tekever raises $580 million at $6.4 billion valuation after CORVUS deal
· TexaHub · Drones, Defence & Security, AI in Industry, Regional Tech Ecosystems
The Portuguese-British maker of AI-enabled surveillance drones closed the first part of a Series D a week after signing a British Army contract worth up to £400 million.
The round
Tekever announced on 23 September the first close of a $580 million Series D that values the company at $6.4 billion [1]. UC Investments, which manages University of California money, and Baillie Gifford led the round; the company said it is UC Investments' first direct investment in Europe [1]. Merlyn Advisors joined as a new investor alongside existing backers Crescent Cove, Ventura Capital and Iberis Capital, and Tekever says this first close covers the majority of the fundraise, with further closings expected over the coming months [1].
Resilience Media reported that Tekever was valued at $1.32 billion after a raise in May 2025, and that it acquired the Scottish heavy-drone startup Flowcopter earlier this month [5]. Tekever says the money will help it expand internationally, add industrial and technological capacity and accelerate acquisitions [1].
Battlefield record and the CORVUS contract
The company, which develops AI-powered autonomous systems including surveillance drones, says its drones have logged more than 50,000 operational flight hours in Ukraine since 2022 [3]. That claim comes from Tekever and has not been independently verified.
On 16 September Tekever signed a contract worth up to £400 million with the UK Ministry of Defence under Project CORVUS to bring its AR5 long-endurance uncrewed aircraft into British Army service [2]. Manufacturing is to be centred at its Swindon facility, supported by a consortium of British SME partners, and the company said CORVUS is expected to begin entering service later this year [2]. FlightGlobal reported that the deal covers an initial batch of six AR5 aircraft under a five-year arrangement [6], while Reuters described the programme as worth up to £400 million over the next decade [4]. Those descriptions are not necessarily in conflict, since the larger figure is a ceiling, but the public record does not set out how the value is phased.
Context
Tekever's raise follows other large European defence-technology rounds: CNBC noted that Helsing raised $1.8 billion and Quantum Systems 1 billion euros in July, and Stark raised 500 million euros in June [3]. Former UK defence secretary Ben Wallace, now at Merlyn Advisors, said Europe's security would depend on companies that can "innovate at speed, scale industrially and deliver capabilities that respond to real operational needs" [1].
The step up from the May 2025 valuation shows how investors are now pricing European sovereign drone capacity. Whether that is sustained will depend on converting framework deals such as CORVUS into delivered aircraft and recurring orders.
Sources
[1] TEKEVER raises US$580 million reaching US$6.4 billion valuation in Series D round led by UC Investments and Baillie Gifford — Tekever, 23 Sep 2026
[2] TEKEVER signs up to £400 million CORVUS contract to deliver next-generation battlefield intelligence capability to the British Army — Tekever, 16 Sep 2026
[3] AI drone maker hits $6.4 billion valuation as Ukraine war spurs defense tech — CNBC, 23 Sep 2026
[4] AI drone maker Tekever valued at $6.4 billion after $580 million funding round — Reuters via Yahoo Finance, 23 Sep 2026
[5] Tekever raises $580M at a $6.8B valuation to give flight to more drones — Resilience Media, 23 Sep 2026
[6] Tekever and UK MoD sign Corvus contract — FlightGlobal, 21 Sep 2026