Fund profile / United States

First In SBIC Critical Technologies Fund 3

Geography: United States
Stage: Seed
Fund size: $148M
Focus: AI/ML, Cybersecurity, Defense and Manufacturing
Signals: Published

N°01 / About

About First In SBIC Critical Technologies Fund 3

Pentagon-backed SBIC Critical Technologies fund. $148M oversubscribed final close. Early-stage investments in enterprise security, AI, autonomy, advanced manufacturing, and cybersecurity for national security applications.

N°02 / Thesis

Investment Focus

Location / RegionUnited States

Funding StageSeed

Industry Focus

AI/ML

Cybersecurity

Defense

Manufacturing

Investor Signals Profile

active

Sweet Spot

Technical founder solving defense/autonomy/supply-chain seed-to-growth stage

cybersecurity

defense-tech

advanced-manufacturing

autonomy & AI

space-systems

unmanned-systems

communications-networking

data-security

seed-to-growth

operator-led

great-power-competition

supply-chain-resilience

hypersonics

AI-for-defense

agentic-AI

Bullish Signals

Fund III: $148M raised, SBA Critical Tech certifiedcrunchbase

Renny McPherson + Arthur Karell: ex-Marines, operator edgewebsite

Portfolio: SCATR, Hybron, Vanguard, Smack, Portal Spacewebsite

Castelion $90M Navy contract, hypersonic to EOC stageexternal

Castelion $13B valuation, Carlyle + a16z backingexternal

Smack building battlefield AI decision tools, Pentagon pressureexternal

Portal Space $50M raised, SpaceX rocket engine veteranexternal

Cloneable $4.6M seed, agentic AI for critical infrastructureexternal

Navy planning 4,500 hypersonic missiles over 5 yearsexternal

Rebecca Gevalt GP: extends early-to-growth venture platformwebsite

Dual-use advisor (Brian Schmanske) on rosterwebsite

Tens of billions DoD tech funding flowing H1 2026external

Anthropic Pentagon friction: opens doors for AI rivalsexternal

SCATR: data fragmentation, encryption, dynamic routing platformexternal

Hybron: 10–100x faster composite manufacturing for defenseexternal

Contrarian Signals

Niche sector limits deal volume velocityexternal

Defense procurement cycles can extend timelinesexternal

Regulatory/export-control overhead for foundersexternal

Anthropic/Pentagon friction: policy risk for AI foundersexternal

Founder Do's

Be technical expert or military/intel practitioner

Target asymmetric vulnerabilities, modern defenses

Address geopolitical tension themes

Show supply-chain or autonomy solve

Move fast, validate with end-users

Align with 'securing freedom' mission

Build for scale: DoD budgets flowing billions

Founder Don'ts

Non-technical or non-security-domain backgrounds

Late-stage or non-defense adjacent verticals

Ignore US government, allied procurement needs

42 signals on First In SBIC Critical Technologies Fund 3

15 bullish · 4 contrarian · 7 pitch do's · 3 don'ts · 13 GP profiles, each with its source. From €9/month, cancel anytime.

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Facts

Fund Overview

Fund Size$148M

Saves0

Website

People

Key People

Renny McPherson

Renny McPhersonManaging Partner

Arthur KarellGeneral Partner

Rebecca GevaltGeneral Partner

Jessica NelsonPrincipal

Josh BatesCo-Host / Investor Network

Ryan McQueenyChief Financial Officer

Kristen StanleyOperations Manager

Claudius E. Watts IVSenior Advisor

Ish BoyleAdvisor, Go-to-Market

Bobby TuohyAdvisor, Technology

Maggie EnglerAdvisor, Technology

Brian SchmanskeAdvisor, Dual-Use Technology

Brian O'KeefeAdvisor

N°04 / See also

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