Covenant Industries has remained under the radar but has backing from some of the biggest names in venture capital.
Covenant Industries, a defense tech startup tied to some of the biggest names in venture capital, is opening a new missile production facility in Grand Prairie.
The 105,000-square-foot facility will manufacture the company’s new Anthem missiles, a long-range cruise missile that’s designed to be mass produced at a lower cost than comparable legacy weapons. More than six months into the Iran war, the U.S. military’s weapons stockpile has been dramatically depleted, and defense companies are racing to produce more cost-effective missiles to meet demand from the Pentagon. In November, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also announced an overhaul of the department’s weapons acquisition strategy that aims in part to encourage new companies to enter the market for defense contracts.
Covenant, which was founded in 2024, has already secured a test contract with the U.S. Army and another agreement with the U.S. Navy to adapt a maritime version of its Anthem missiles. The startup has secured approximately $150 million in orders, according to information the company provided to The News.
“When you look at our adversaries, you see thousands of hardened targets, beyond the range of current capabilities,” Michael Kaufman, the company’s cofounder and CEO, said in a statement. “Anthem was built to credibly hold those targets at risk in a prolonged conflict. If our stockpiles run thin, so does our deterrence.”
Covenant is scheduled to hold a ribbon-cutting for its new North Texas facility Wednesday, with Covenant executives as well as U.S. Rep. Jake Ellzey, R-Waxahachie, and U.S. Under Secretary of Defense Michael Duffey.
“When Covenant looked across the country for a place to build, they found what we already know about North Texas,” Ellzey said in a statement. “We have the workers, engineers and innovators to get the job done.”
David Ulevitch, a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, was also scheduled to attend. The Silicon Valley-based firm, which ranks among the biggest names in venture capital, has led three fundraising rounds for the company along with Founders Fund — the VC firm cofounded by PayPal and Palantir cofounder Peter Thiel — Lux, 8VC, Aleph and Lightspeed. Covenant has announced more than $250 million in funding across the three rounds, the company said.
The defense startup is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and also has production facilities in Germany and Israel. Kaufman, the company’s cofounder, previously worked with Thiel’s firms and served in the Israel Defense Forces. Covenant expects to begin production at its North Texas facility in the first quarter of next year, and will eventually produce up to 5,000 missiles at the site annually, the company said.
