El Segundo, CA – As Russia presses ahead with hypersonic missile deployments like its bombardment against critical infrastructure in western Ukraine's Lviv region, America continues to close the gap. Senior executives at defense startup Castelion described the U.S. military's demand for the company's Blackbeard hypersonic strike weapon as unprecedented, highlighting the "extraordinary" urgency to deliver superior, mass-produced capabilities that restore deterrence through overwhelming strength.
In an exclusive interview, Castelion Co-Founder Andrew Kreitz stressed that Blackbeard, engineered from a clean-sheet design by former SpaceX alumni, will not only match but decisively outpace foreign systems through innovative, rapid iteration and scalable production. "We're not just going to provide a comparable missile. We're going to provide better missiles and faster, in mass." He added that when Blackbeard is developed, it will “far surpass" the ones that have hammered Ukraine over the past two days.
Castelion draws inspiration directly from SpaceX's playbook. The company vertically integrates key technologies like rocket motors and guidance systems while conducting high-tempo flight testing, with more than 25 developmental tests completed in under 18 months. Castelion designs for manufacturability, compressing development cycles from years to months and potentially cutting costs by 10x compared to traditional weapons. This approach enables industrial-scale production of Blackbeard at commercial prices, positioning it as the first U.S. hypersonic system built for mass production.
The philosophy aligns with the Trump administration's renewed emphasis on deterrence, which Secretary of War Pete Hegseth homed in on during his Arsenal of Freedom Tour stop in Los Angeles. "We're reestablishing deterrence that's so absolute and so unquestioned that our enemies will not dare to test us,” Secretary Hegseth said.
Kreitz, who also serves as Castelion’s Chief Financial Officer, seems to agree.
"We're sort of inspired by the Reagan peace through strength mantra. What it means to us is we have to be drastically more militarily capable than our adversaries," Kreitz said. "The most likely scenario for a major war is that we are at parity or close to parity. What we really need is the production capacity and the stockpile of these to prevent a war from happening in the first place.”
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Russia's operational use of hypersonics, from the air-launched Kinzhal to the recent ground-launched Oreshnik strikes, underscores the stakes, as these systems challenge conventional defenses, heightening global tensions. This makes Blackbeard's affordability, speed, and volume essential for U.S. comparative advantage.
This emphasis on deterrence through superior capability reflects the Trump administration's longstanding commitment to advancing U.S. hypersonic capabilities. During his first term, President Trump dramatically increased Pentagon funding for hypersonic programs from about $800 million in 2017 to over $3.4 billion by 2020. In his second term, the administration has built on this momentum with bold initiatives such as the Golden Dome missile defense system to counter hypersonic threats from Russia and China.
Companies like Castelion are well-positioned to continue securing contracts under Hegseth’s sweeping defense acquisition reforms, which prioritize speed, scalability, and cost-effectiveness over traditional bureaucratic models.
Editor's Note: This article was updated post-publication for clarity.
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