@Castelion
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Forging the future of hypersonic strike weapons through Modern Defense Production
Torrance, CA
Joined October 2023
- Tweets284
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Castelion retweeted
My first conversation with Bryon Hargis (@hargsb), Cofounder and CEO of @Castelion. This is a special edition of our show recorded at @reindsummit. Since then, Castelion has announced a $1 billion Series C funding valuing the company at $13 billion making it one of the most valuable defense technology companies in the ecosystem.
What we cover:
- Why Bryon sold his SpaceX stock to bootstrap Castelion and bet two-thirds of his savings on the mission.
- Why affordable, mass-produced hypersonic missiles are central to his vision of American deterrence.
- Building Blackbeard, winning the first Navy order, and scaling production to thousands of missiles a year.
- The SpaceX lessons behind faster hardware development: rapid testing, questioning convention, and knowing when to change course.
- Hiring for mission over money and why company culture is built one person at a time.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Intro
01:00 Bootstrapping with SpaceX stock and crypto mining
07:00 Why Bryon started a defense company
11:00 Building deterrence and landing the first Navy order
14:00 Scaling missile manufacturing in New Mexico
18:00 Meet Blackbeard: Castelion’s hypersonic missile
20:00 Hypersonic vs. ballistic vs. cruise missiles
23:00 Golden Dome and the future of missile defense
25:00 How SpaceX enables America’s national security
27:00 Elon Musk, ambitious deadlines, and moving faster
30:00 Why rapid testing beats over-engineering
33:00 Lessons from SpaceX: Question convention, follow the data
38:00 Hiring for the mission and building company culture
45:00 Growing as a founder and being willing to be wrong
Congrats to friends of the show @a16z @davidu @TheAmbitionCap @lacostejonathan and others including @lightspeedvp @AltimeterCap @generalcatalyst
Special thanks to @falondonohue @austinbishop @aphysicist for hosting @WeThe_Builders in Detroit
We're building something big in New Mexico, with the people who call it home. Join us! castelion.com/project-ranger…
Our CEO @hargsb joined @SpecialReport to discuss how Castelion is manufacturing munitions differently. Thank you, @BretBaier, for the focus on rebuilding America’s arsenal.
Castelion retweeted
BOLSTERING THE DEFENSE INDUSTRIAL BASE: @BretBaier examines efforts to overhaul the defense industrial base through stable, multi-year funding frameworks and a growing reliance on agile commercial startups. As Under Secretary of War for Acquisition and Sustainment Michael Duffey notes, multi-billion-dollar deals with prime contractors like Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman are locking in production for critical systems like Tomahawk, THAAD, and Patriot interceptors. Meanwhile, the Defense Innovation Unit and next-gen tech firms like Castelion and Rocket Lab are utilizing rapid commercial manufacturing practices to scale up hypersonic capabilities and outpace modern threats.
Castelion retweeted
Building Blackbeard is possible because of the @DeptofWar's commitment to building low-cost munitions at scale. Thanks @BretBaier and @SpecialReport for having me on.
BOLSTERING THE DEFENSE INDUSTRIAL BASE: @BretBaier examines efforts to overhaul the defense industrial base through stable, multi-year funding frameworks and a growing reliance on agile commercial startups. As Under Secretary of War for Acquisition and Sustainment Michael Duffey notes, multi-billion-dollar deals with prime contractors like Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman are locking in production for critical systems like Tomahawk, THAAD, and Patriot interceptors. Meanwhile, the Defense Innovation Unit and next-gen tech firms like Castelion and Rocket Lab are utilizing rapid commercial manufacturing practices to scale up hypersonic capabilities and outpace modern threats.
Castelion retweeted
Blackbeard Hypersonic Missile Seen Flying On F/A-18 Super Hornet For The First Time
The Navy is pushing to get Blackbeard, a lower-cost and fast-to-produce standoff weapon, into operational service by 2028 at the latest.
twz.com/air/blackbeard-hyper…
Castelion retweeted
Incredible shots! 📸 📸 @Castelion is honored to be onboard.
TIME's new cover: Admiral Samuel Paparo is preparing for a war he hopes never to fight. His mission: prevent conflict with China.
“If I do my job right, history will never know my name,” he tells TIME in an exclusive interview time.com/article/2026/09/24/…
U.S. Rep. Joe Morelle, member of the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, met with our leadership team at Castelion's headquarters and saw our production line firsthand.
Thanks for making the trip, @RepJoeMorelle.
Blackbeard is going into production. The U.S. Navy has awarded Castelion a production order valued at up to $200 million for an initial lot of Blackbeard Hypersonic Weapons, following the 50 EOC rounds ordered in June. Engineered from day one for the production line. Grateful to PAE(A) for the trust and the urgency. castelion.com/news/blackbear…
On the 25th anniversary of 9/11, we honor those who lost their lives, the heroic first responders, and the strength and resiliency of Americans across the world.
We will never forget.
Castelion retweeted
Excited to make this demo happen. Couldn’t agree more on demonstrating capability and working with like-minded companies. We have to hit some priorities on our three platform integration contracts (one to be announced soon), but we’ll make this happen ASAP.
.@Saronic is partnering with @Castelion to launch a hypersonic missile off the back of an autonomous ship:
“We're actually going to launch a hypersonic missile off the back of Marauder, an autonomous ship, before the Navy completes their first test of a hypersonic missile off of a manned vessel.”
@hargsb @MavrookasD
The future of the United States depends on our Navy's ability to design and field a force that stays ahead of any future problem set and adversary.
Castelion was grateful to host the @FutureNavyComm at our headquarters and contribute to their plans for the future of naval power.
Congressman @RobWittman, Vice Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, recently visited our Torrance headquarters to discuss American innovation in affordable strike weapons.
