America's Path to Tech Dominance, Fundings: Floodbase, Vantage Robotics, Karman+
26 February 2025 - A Weekly Publication by New North Ventures
America Needs a Sovereign Wealth Fund
In a timely article, In-Q-Tel (IQT) leaders Steve Bowsher and Sarah Sewall argue that the U.S. urgently needs a sovereign wealth fund (SWF) to preserve its technological leadership on the global stage. In January 2025, President Trump signed an executive order calling for the creation of a U.S.-owned SWF to boost America's long-term financial health and innovation capacity. While the proposal has largely flown under the radar, the authors believe it could become a game-changer for U.S. competitiveness, particularly in emerging sectors like advanced technology, biomanufacturing, and medical research.
A U.S. SWF would strategically invest in nascent technologies that private capital often overlooks, helping to secure the nation's tech dominance in areas critical for national security. Unlike China’s top-down economic model, the proposed U.S. fund would align government and private sector interests to accelerate innovation and sustain long-term technological growth. With careful management, the SWF could catalyze private investment while mitigating risks, particularly in industries like quantum computing and clean energy, where development timelines often outpace private-sector funding.
Sarah Sewall was recently a speaker at our Boston Innovation Summit, where she shared her expertise on fostering U.S. innovation. Her work at IQT provides an important platform for her thought leadership in shaping strategies for U.S. technological leadership. Her perspective emphasizes the strategic integration of government and private investment to maintain U.S. leadership in global technological innovation.
By mirroring successful models like the Development Finance Corporation and IQT’s equity investments, the proposed SWF would provide a new tool for steering private capital toward high-impact startups. The fund could support scaling these innovations into global leaders, ensuring America’s continued edge in next-generation technologies. An SWF could be the key to securing U.S. leadership in the rapidly evolving global tech landscape.
This forward-thinking approach underscores the importance of government-driven investments in strengthening America's technological future while aligning with private sector innovation. As the competition with China intensifies, the U.S. must consider bold strategies to stay ahead—and an SWF could be the answer.
More links to explore:
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Founded: 2015
Key People: CEO Bessie Schwarz
Elevator Pitch: Developer of a remote sensing platform designed to track floods in real time. The company's platform uses satellites and artificial intelligence to observe floods without ground equipment, algorithms to smooth out difficult terrain and eliminate clouds to see the floods below, monitors people and assets at risk, pinpoints blocked roads, and measures the amount of property and agricultural damage, enabling catastrophe insurers, communities, and watershed managers to understand their risk and prepare and respond to the next flood.
Funding: The company raised $5 million of seed funding in a deal led by The Ecosystem Integrity Fund on February 21, 2025.
Founded: 2013
Key People: CEO Tobin Fisher
Elevator Pitch: Manufactures advanced drone and enabling technologies, supporting military and national security missions to collect and analyze critical data in field. The company's drone utilizes gimbal control techniques and precise motors to distribute the kinetic energy of impact across components making it light and durable while tracking other users, enabling commercial and government markets to simplify drone functionality in a hassle-free manner.
Funding: The company raised an estimated $159.6 million of venture funding in the form of convertible promissory notes from ideaForge on February 20, 2025.
Founded: 2022
Key People: CTO Teun van den Dries
Elevator Pitch: Karman+ is pioneering autonomous spacecraft for asteroid mining. Its first mission is to build a vessel capable of traveling millions of miles to mine asteroids, extract water from regolith, and return to Earth’s orbit to refuel space tugs and extend satellite lifespans. Long-term, Karman+ aims to tap into rare metals and contribute to a space-based manufacturing ecosystem, reducing reliance on Earth’s resources.
Funding: The company raised $20 million of seed funding in a deal led by Hummingbird Ventures and Plural Platform on February 19, 2025.
In our most recent episode of the Securing the Future Podcast, general partner Jeremy Hitchcock sits down with Nicholas Fitzgerald a strategic advisor to global corporations, law and private-equity firms, sovereigns, and others facing high-stakes reputational, commercial, PR, regulatory, and policy challenges. Together, they dive into how commercial and national security sectors collaborate to drive innovation.
