Draper Associates
Draper Associates is a venture capital firm headquartered in San Mateo, California, that backs early-stage and seed companies worldwide. The firm focuses on visionary founders pursuing transformative technologies across sectors such as artificial intelligence, robotics, biotech, crypto, space, software as a service, and cloud-based platforms. It supports portfolio companies from pre-seed to Series A, offering capital together with strategic guidance, mentorship, and access to a broad network to help teams scale and bring breakthrough ideas to market. Draper Associates maintains an industry-agnostic approach but seeks ventures with the potential to disrupt markets, create jobs, and drive meaningful growth. The firm emphasizes long-term partnerships and a willingness to fund ambitious projects that seem improbable today but may become inevitable tomorrow.
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Past deals in Mechanical Engineering
Firehawk Aerospace
Series C in 2025
Firehawk Aerospace is a private aerospace company focused on advanced rocket propulsion technology. It develops rocket engines and propulsion systems with efficiency and reliability comparable to liquid bi-propellant engines while maintaining safety and simplicity akin to hybrid engines. The firm uses proprietary additive manufacturing to produce 3D-printed fuel grains tailored to specific sizes and thrust profiles, enabling customized, scalable propulsion solutions. Founded in 2018 and based in Melbourne, Florida, with an additional office in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Firehawk aims to improve space transportation efficiency, safety, and cost competitiveness.
Rosotics
Pre Seed Round in 2023
Rosotics designs, builds, and operates metal 3D printing platforms for aerospace, naval, and defense applications. It specializes in induction-based metal additive manufacturing and offers large-scale printers developed and operated in-house to produce integrated structural flight hardware and complex components that are difficult or impossible to fabricate with traditional methods. The platforms provide end-to-end production capability with integrated licensing, enabling enhanced efficiency and flexibility in manufacturing.
Gravitics
Seed Round in 2022
Gravitics, Inc. specializes in the design and manufacturing of large space structures, including orbital carriers, cargo logistics spacecraft, and space station modules. The company is focused on developing aerospace station technology that serves as the foundation for human life in space. Utilizing next-generation hardware, Gravitics' innovations facilitate shipyard-style fabrication within the aerospace sector, providing clients with versatile interfacing options and robust space armor. Through its advancements, Gravitics aims to redefine space superiority and promote commercial development in Earth orbit and beyond.
Firehawk Aerospace
Series B in 2022
Firehawk Aerospace is a private aerospace company focused on advanced rocket propulsion technology. It develops rocket engines and propulsion systems with efficiency and reliability comparable to liquid bi-propellant engines while maintaining safety and simplicity akin to hybrid engines. The firm uses proprietary additive manufacturing to produce 3D-printed fuel grains tailored to specific sizes and thrust profiles, enabling customized, scalable propulsion solutions. Founded in 2018 and based in Melbourne, Florida, with an additional office in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Firehawk aims to improve space transportation efficiency, safety, and cost competitiveness.
Rosotics
Pre Seed Round in 2022
Rosotics designs, builds, and operates metal 3D printing platforms for aerospace, naval, and defense applications. It specializes in induction-based metal additive manufacturing and offers large-scale printers developed and operated in-house to produce integrated structural flight hardware and complex components that are difficult or impossible to fabricate with traditional methods. The platforms provide end-to-end production capability with integrated licensing, enabling enhanced efficiency and flexibility in manufacturing.
Venus Aerospace
Series A in 2022
Founded in 2020, Venus Aerospace is a startup focused on engineering the future of hypersonic flight. The company specializes in developing rotating detonation rocket engines (RDRE) and high-speed vehicles for research, defense, and commercial missions, aiming to provide fast transportation with improved range and performance at a cost-effective rate.
Venus Aerospace
Seed Round in 2021
Founded in 2020, Venus Aerospace is a startup focused on engineering the future of hypersonic flight. The company specializes in developing rotating detonation rocket engines (RDRE) and high-speed vehicles for research, defense, and commercial missions, aiming to provide fast transportation with improved range and performance at a cost-effective rate.
Gravity Industries
Venture Round in 2017
Gravity Industries designs and develops a propulsion-based flight system that combines body-mounted mini jet engines with an exoskeletal suit to enable vertical takeoff and controlled flight. The suit uses the pilot's shifting body weight and arm movements as thrust control, and is intended for commercial and entertainment applications. Founded in 2017 by Richard Browning, the company is based in Barnet, United Kingdom, and is known for pioneering human propulsion technology and demonstrating the world's first propulsion suit.
Vires Aeronautics
Seed Round in 2013
Vires Aeronautics, founded in 2013 and based in Livermore, California, specializes in enhancing vehicle performance across various industries. The company's flagship product, VIRES Aquila MK1, is a revolutionary wing with embedded control surfaces that improves aerodynamics, enabling faster takeoff and landing, increased payload capacity, improved maneuverability, extended range, and reduced fuel consumption. Initially focused on aeronautics, Vires Aeronautics has since expanded its applications to include automobiles, submarines, ships, turbines, and trains, demonstrating its potential to disrupt multiple markets with its innovative wing design.
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