North Vector Dynamics, aiming to meet demand for low-cost counterdrone tech, raises $29-million

Canadian missile-maker North Vector Dynamics is ramping up manufacturing of its counterdrone technology and expanding its global footprint, with interest from Canada and its allies growing as they witness the effectiveness of the low-cost technologies in the conflicts in Ukraine and Iran.

The Calgary-based company has raised $29-million in Series A funding led by European venture capital fund Tech Horizons. It plans to use the money to expand manufacturing and assembly of its low-cost interceptor missile in Canada, as well as open new offices in the U.S. and Europe, where it can work with its partners to localize production.

The last time North Vector Dynamics closed a funding round was in December. Chief executive officer Paul Ziadé said he experienced more headwinds last year, as an explicitly defence-focused company raising money, than this year, indicating a change in the way investors are viewing the sector.

Originally, Mr. Ziadé said he didn’t plan on raising Series A financing, a major funding step, until this fall. But when investors came to him in the spring asking to lead his next round, he went for it.

“The time to build these technologies is now. There is a real sense of urgency right now. Europe can’t wait. The Gulf can’t wait. Arguably, Canada shouldn’t wait. And so, we said ‘let’s do it and let’s just pour more fuel on the fire.’”

In August, 2025, North Vector received a four-year, $4.2-million contract with Ottawa’s Defence Research and Development Canada, to work on propulsion and hypersonic technologies. Previously, it had received a $2.5-million grant from National Defence’s Innovation for Defence Excellence and Security program.

Mr. Ziadé said he’s currently fielding further interest from Canada, as well as its allies, in terms of working toward more contracts.

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The effectiveness of low-cost counterdrone technologies against more expensive, advanced systems has been on full display in recent conflicts, such as when the U.S. and Israel launched their war on Iran in February.

While the two major military powers possess an arsenal of powerful equipment, its effectiveness against Iran’s cheap weapons quickly proved to be a problem for the countries, as they lost systems worth billions of dollars to drones that are much easier to reproduce.

North Vector’s flagship product, the CM-70, is a precision-guided missile designed to intercept and destroy drones. It’s less than a metre long, weighs about three kilograms and can travel at 900 kilometres an hour. It can be launched in the air, from another drone, as well as from the ground.

The missile is a “fraction of the cost” of its competitors, Mr. Ziadé said. He referenced the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System, made by U.S.-based Bae Systems, as an example. The U.S. Navy awarded the company a five-year contract of up to US$1.74-billion in August, 2025, for as many as 55,000 of the kits, which convert regular rockets into guided munitions.

Canadian investors in North Vector’s Series A round include ONE9, Garage Capital, Ripple Ventures, Feld Ventures and Conconi Growth Partners.

Mr. Ziadé said the domestic contributors made up a “sizable minority” of this financing round, with the rest being American and European. Czech group CSG, which recently acquired a 9.5-per-cent stake in Canadian company MDA Space Ltd, also participated.

Matej Luhovy, a partner at Tech Horizons, said the closing of North Vector’s Series A round reinforces his “belief that technologies like these will play a decisive role in strengthening the defence capabilities of democratic nations.”

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To meet anticipated demand, Mr. Ziadé said his company’s goal is to open a 25,000-square-foot facility and ramp up missile production to be in the thousands per year in 2027.

North Vector is also hoping to control more of its supply chain. For example, Mr. Ziadé said he hopes to produce his own fuzes, which are the component used to activate the warhead in the missile, as well as ensure that they remain safe during other stages of operation.

“Canada does not have the most developed defence industrial base right now, especially for certain key capabilities and components that are incredibly important in the missile supply chain,” he said.

“If we can bring some of these things in-house, that would allow us to have a lot more flexibility and resiliency.”