Terra Industries Raises $11.75M + SORA Closes $2.5M for Malaria AI + Qualcomm Backs 10 African Hardware Startups
Nigerian defense prime backed by Palantir co-founder. Japan-based malaria tech expands across 10 African countries with AI-driven drones. Monday, January 12, 2026
Three stories define African tech infrastructure expansion today.
Terra Industries, a Nigerian defense company founded by Gen Z entrepreneurs (22 and 24), raised $11.75 million led by Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale’s 8VC to build Africa’s first defense prime, protecting $11 billion in continental infrastructure.
SORA Technology, a Japan-based startup, closed an additional $2.5 million in its late seed round (total: $7.3M) to scale AI-driven malaria control across 10+ African countries, combining satellite data, drones, and predictive analytics.
Qualcomm announced its Make in Africa 2026 program, offering equity-free mentorship, 1:1 technical guidance, $5,000 stipends, and up to $5,000 in patent filing support to 10 selected early-stage African startups building connectivity and processing technologies.
Terra Industries Raises $11.75M—Gen Z Founders Build Africa’s First Defense Prime with Palantir Co-Founder Backing
Terra Industries, a Nigerian defense technology company, announced Monday that it emerged from stealth with an $11.75 million funding round led by 8VC, the venture firm founded by Palantir Technologies co-founder Joe Lonsdale.
Other investors in the round include Valor Equity Partners, Lux Capital, SV Angel, and Nova Global—the same firms that backed Anduril Industries (now valued at $30 billion), Palantir, and SpaceX.
African investors include Tofino Capital, Kaleo Ventures, and DFS Lab.
The company previously raised an $800,000 pre-seed round.
The founders
Nathan Nwachuku, 22 (CEO), and Maxwell Maduka, 24 (CTO), launched Terra Industries in 2024 after Nwachuku concluded that Africa’s rapid industrialization—driven by mining, energy, and infrastructure development—would stall unless the continent addressed its “greatest Achilles’ heel: terrorism and insecurity.”
Fintech is crowded.
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That’s where the next wave of African unicorns will be built.
The team
40% of Terra’s engineers previously held the same role in the Nigerian military, bringing operational experience from defense contexts that Western startups lack.
Nigeria’s Vice Air Marshal Ayo Jolasinmi serves as an advisor.
Alex Moore, who focuses on defense investing at 8VC and serves as a non-executive director at Palantir, joined Terra’s board.
The product
Based in Abuja, Terra designed multi-domain autonomous systems powered by proprietary software ArtemisOS:
Air: Long-range and short-range drones for aerial surveillance and threat detection
Ground: Autonomous sentry towers and unmanned ground vehicles for perimeter security
Maritime: Under development—technology to protect offshore rigs and underwater pipelines
Traction and revenue
Terra recently won its first federal contract and has generated more than $2.5 million in commercial revenue to date, protecting assets valued at approximately $11 billion.
Commercial revenue comes from protecting private infrastructure: at least two hydropower plants, several gold and lithium mines (primarily in Nigeria and Ghana), and other facilities requiring perimeter security and threat monitoring.
Why it matters
Silicon Valley defense capital is deploying to Africa, backing African-led companies with local expertise rather than exporting Western systems.
If Terra succeeds, African governments will increasingly choose African-built systems over Western or Chinese imports—shifting billions in future defense spending toward homegrown providers.
