One of the most legendary venture capital funds in Silicon Valley is making a bet on a startup that wants to use machine learning and robotics for something new: combating drone attacks.

‍What’s happening:‍

• New York City based defense tech startup ZeroMark has raised $7M USD in a seed round
  
• The round was led by legendary Silicon Valley venture capital fund a16z and Ground Up Ventures
  

The big idea:‍

• ZeroMark leverages machine learning, computer vision and robotics to develop leading edge technology that is capable of operating firearms with extreme precision and accuracy
  
• ZeroMark is aiming to enable soldiers to be able to combat rapidly moving, low flying drones in battle
  
• The technology and robotics built by ZeroMark leaves human beings still in full control of firearm operations, but accelerates reaction time and targeting to be able to quickly identify threats presented by military grade drones
  

Why it matters:‍

• Defense tech is one of the fastest growing areas of venture capital, with more North American based venture capital funds beginning to deploy capital to startups who are building the future of combat technology from new robotics to domestic drone manufacturing
  

Going deeper:‍

• a16z has been one of the most ambitious venture capital funds pursuing the opportunity in defense tech, launching a $600M USD fund known as American Dynamism which is exclusively focused on backing entrepreneurs and founders building startups for combat and defense

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