World-renowned scramjet expert and former NASA scientist Dr. Michael Smart, together with former U.S. Ambassador and Federal Science & Industry Minister Arthur Sinodinos, are leading Hypersonix as it prepares to launch the world’s first 3D-printed, hydrogen-powered hypersonic scramjet engine. This milestone flight, undertaken in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Defense and NASA, is scheduled for later this year.
North Ridge Partners acted as exclusive financial advisor to Hypersonix on the transaction, with the advisory team led by Managing Partner Christin Burns, working closely alongside Hypersonix CTO Dr Michael Smart and CEO Matt Hill. Metrics are being closely held, but the transaction brings three heavyweight investors onto the cap table: High Tor Capital (lead investor), Saab and RKKVC.
High Tor Capital backs foundational technologies with dual-use applications that strengthen national security. Saab is a leading global defence and security company, providing advanced systems in aeronautics, weapons, command and control, sensors and underwater systems, and RKKVC is a Polish family office with deep exposure to space-qualified AI and secure communications technologies.
Dr Smart, Hypersonix CTO and one of the world’s foremost authorities on scramjet propulsion, previously chaired Hypersonic Propulsion at the University of Queensland (a world-leader in hypersonic research) and spent a decade as a research scientist at NASA. He co-founded Hypersonix in 2019 to bring into production the technology he spent decades developing in the lab: the SPARTAN scramjet, which uses green hydrogen fuel, contains no moving parts, and is fully 3D-printed.
Later this year, the US Government will put SPARTAN to the test aboard Hypersonix’s test platform aircraft, DART AE, as part of the Pentagon’s HyCAT (Hypersonic and High-Cadence Airborne Testing) program, delivered through the US Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), and launched to Mach 7 on Rocket Labs HASTE booster. The flight will take place from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.
The DIU is the only US defense organisation dedicated exclusively to accelerating the adoption of commercial technology across the US military at commercial speed. Hypersonix was the first prototype contract awarded under the HyCAT program, selected from a competitive field of more than 60 applicants.
DIU Program Manager Major Ryan Weed described HyCAT as a “paradigm shift in viewing the hypersonic realm as a place for aircraft, not just missiles and weapons.”
Speaking on the significance of the raise and the company’s next phase of growth, Dr Smart said he was delighted to welcome new shareholders to the register. “We will use these funds to support Hypersonix’s expanding global commercial footprint, including significant US contracts with the Department of Defense and NASDAQ-listed Kratos, and the establishment of advanced manufacturing capabilities in Queensland,” he said.
Hypersonix CEO Matt Hill said the raise represents a major step forward for the company’s growth and commercial ambitions. “This transaction marks an important milestone as Hypersonix transitions from being funded primarily by government grants to securing highly experienced, defence-focused institutional investors who can assist with scaling the company, and is now really propelling us to practical execution through strategic partnership.”
“I commend the team for their outstanding work in attracting world-class global investors and laying the foundation for an exciting next phase of growth,” said Chair Arthur Sinodinos.
Hypersonix is targeting additional strategic capital as part of an upcoming second close, with funds to support the company’s expanding global commercial footprint, including the US trials and the build-out of manufacturing capabilities in Queensland”.
