President Donald Trump’s ally and Palantir Technologies co-founder, Joe Lonsdale, has spearheaded an investment drive that raised $11.7 million for Terrahaptix, a Nigerian technology startup focused on developing defence drones to strengthen security infrastructure across Africa.
Founded in 2024 by 22-year-old Nathan Nwachukwu and 24-year-old Maxwell Maduka, Terrahaptix was created to address the persistent challenges of terrorism and insecurity confronting the continent.
According to Mr Nwachukwu, the company secured the $11.7 million in a funding round led by 8VC, a venture firm established by Mr Lonsdale. Other investors in the round include Valor Equity Partners, Lux Capital, SV Angel, Leblon Capital GmbH, Silent Ventures LLC, Nova Global, as well as angel investor Melya Malka.
The startup also disclosed that Alex Moore, a non-executive director at Palantir and a senior figure at 8VC, joined Terrahaptix’s board of directors last year.
Terrahaptix operates a manufacturing facility in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, where it produces drones, sentry towers, and unmanned ground vehicles designed to identify threats to critical infrastructure and provide real-time alerts to security agencies.
As of August 2025, the company had already secured contracts valued at more than $12 million to protect infrastructure assets across Africa.
Speaking to Bloomberg on Monday, Mr Nwachukwu noted that Africa is experiencing rapid industrial growth, with new mines, refineries, and power plants emerging frequently, but warned that such progress would be undermined without addressing insecurity and terrorism. He described Terrahaptix’s mission as providing Africa with the technological advantage required for effective resource protection and counterterrorism.
The company said the latest funding will be deployed to scale its operations across the continent. Terrahaptix currently supplies security solutions to Nigeria’s hydropower facilities and gold and lithium mining operations in Ghana, and plans to expand defence production and enhance its data intelligence operating system with the new capital.