The New Era of Defense Investing: Technology, Capital and the Family Office

Family offices now supply ~50% of capital to boutique defense-tech VCs, drawn by outsized returns, Pentagon access, and new non-dilutive government funding structures.

• Family office capital surge: Scout Ventures ($500M AUM, fund V) and Squadra Ventures ($400M AUM, ~30 investments) both report family offices make up roughly 50% of their LP base, up from near-zero a decade ago.
• SpaceX as proof point: Harrison cites a family office that turned $50,000 into $220 million in SpaceX (4,452x), fueling appetite beyond index-fund returns.

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