Palmer Luckey and Ben Lamm raised $200 million for Warhound, a startup that wants to use gene editing to breed better military and police dogs.
Palmer Luckey, cofounder of defense company Anduril, has launched a startup called Warhound that aims to genetically engineer high-performance military dogs. It raised $200 million in seed funding, which is a company's first major round of outside money. Ben Lamm, cofounder of Colossal Biosciences, is the other founder named.
Warhound says it wants to rebuild the US supply of working dogs for the military, law enforcement and emergency first-response teams. It says most US military dogs now come from Europe, and many are later judged unfit for service.
Colossal uses gene-editing tools to protect endangered species and revive extinct ones. Lamm told TechCrunch the work would aim to make dogs faster, more agile and better at sniffing out bombs. Anduril will supply gear such as eye and ear protection for dogs and handlers.
Investors include In-Q-Tel, Sequoia Capital, ARK Invest and Franklin Templeton. David Spirk, a Marine Corps veteran and Palantir senior counselor, is CEO. The company is based in Texas and says it is certified by the American Humane Society. It argues healthier dogs will mean fewer animals going through intensive training they do not need.
The reporting does not say when engineered dogs might enter service, what they would cost, or how many would be produced. It also does not explain how the gene editing would work in dogs, or what rules would apply.
Warhound is a $200 million bet that lab-engineered dogs can replace imported working dogs, but timing, cost and methods are still unclear.
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