In-Q-Tel
Corporate VCTysons · Seed–Growth · 11 people tracked
Investment thesis
IQT pursues a Global Security Investing mission, identifying over-the-horizon developments in frontier technology domains and using its not-for-profit investment platform to accelerate the introduction of groundbreaking technologies for national security. It pairs high-tech problem solvers with government challenges to deliver mission impact for a range of U.S. and allied government partners, including the CIA, NGA, FBI, DIA, NSA, NRO, DHS, U.S. Cyber Command, U.S. Space Force, and the U.K. and Australian intelligence communities.
Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.
Team · 11 people
from the firm's website & public directories
What they invest in
from 49 of 64 portfolio companiesAI & Machine Learning ×29Deep Tech ×21Enterprise Software ×17Hardware ×12Defense Tech ×11Data & Infrastructure ×10Cybersecurity ×9Developer Tools ×7
HQs:United States×24United Kingdom×2Netherlands×2Australia×1Canada×1Germany×1
Investments · 64 tracked
founders shown can be your intro path
Bounce Imaging manufactures tactical 360-degree camera systems and robotics for first responders, law enforcement, and military personnel to safely assess confined spaces.
Defense TechHardwareRoboticsBuffalo, US
Francisco Aguilar(Executive Officer, Director)Ronjon Nag(Director)James Smist(Director)Sietse Dijkstra(Executive Officer)Mark Fargason(Executive Officer)Mikhail Fridberg(Executive Officer)
Palitronica develops physics-based hardware assurance solutions that use radio-frequency signal analysis and machine learning to detect defects, counterfeits, unauthorized design changes, and malicious tampering in electronics.
AI & Machine LearningCybersecurityEnterprise SoftwareHardwareKitchener, CA
Quantum Systems designs and manufactures electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) unmanned aerial systems for military, defense, and commercial customers to collect aerial intelligence and real-time mission-critical data.
AI & Machine LearningDeep TechDefense TechHardware
Tobias Kloss(Founder)Armin Busse(Founder)Florian Seibel(Co-Founder & Co-CEO)inSven Kruck(Co-CEO)inDave Sharpin(CEO at Quantum Systems Inc.)in
Sakana AI develops frontier AI research and products, including large language models, multi-agent orchestration systems, and AI solutions tailored for Japanese enterprises and public sector organizations.
AI & Machine LearningDeep TechDefense TechTokyo, JP
David Ha(Co-Founder & CEO)Ren Ito(Co-Founder & Chairman)Llion Jones(Co-Founder & CTO)
Sayari provides forensic investigation services using corporate records, trade data, and network analysis to uncover hidden risk networks across sanctions evasion, financial crime, counternarcotics, and adversary operations for law enforcement and government clients.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareFintechGovTechLegalTechWashington, US
Eric Rhoades(Executive Officer)Mike Zappert(Director)Farley Mesko(Executive Officer)Benjamin Power(Executive Officer)Benjamin Cukier(Director)Akash Pradhan(Director)
Advanced Navigation develops navigation and positioning systems using inertial, photonic, and quantum sensing technologies for autonomous systems across defense, space, climate science, and commercial applications.
AI & Machine LearningDeep TechDefense TechIoTRoboticsSpace Tech<UNKNOWN>, AU
Anduril Industries is a defense technology company that builds autonomous systems and AI-powered software for the United States and allied militaries.
AI & Machine LearningDeep TechFintechGaming
ANELLO Photonics develops silicon photonics-based inertial navigation systems, specifically its SiPhOG platform, which delivers optical gyroscope performance in a chip-scale form factor for GPS-denied environments.
Deep TechDefense TechHardwareSemiconductorsSanta Clara, US
Dr. Mario Paniccia(Co-Founder and CEO)
Atomic Tessellator combines computational physics with machine learning and enterprise software architecture, though the page does not specify its product offering or customer market.
AI & Machine LearningDeep TechNew Materials
BoardDr. Priyank KumarProf. Simon Ringer
BEI manufactures high-energy-density lithium metal batteries for decarbonization applications.
Deep TechDefense TechEnergyHardwareNew MaterialsAnsan, KR
Josiah (Changdeuck) Bae(Founder & CEO)David (YoungJin) Yoon(Co-founder & CTO)
Blackshark.ai builds AI infrastructure that converts satellite and drone imagery into operational intelligence for understanding the physical world.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureDeep Tech<UNKNOWN>
Deepgram builds foundational voice AI technology that enables speech-to-text, audio intelligence, text-to-speech, and voice agent APIs for businesses to create natural voice interactions.
AI & Machine LearningCloud ComputingDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSan Francisco, US
Scott Stephenson(CEO and Co-founder)Dave Wilner(Director)Adam Sypniewski(Executive Officer, Director)
BoardZach DeWitt(Director)Elizabeth de Saint-Aignan(Director)
Dreadnode builds infrastructure for deploying AI-powered security agents at scale, serving security teams and operators who need to operationalize artificial intelligence for offensive and defensive security operations.
AI & Machine LearningCybersecurityDeveloper ToolsEnterprise Software
Will Pearce(CEO and Co-Founder)in
Ent is a workspace security platform that monitors human, AI, and application activity in real time to detect and prevent risks as they occur, rather than after the fact.
CybersecurityDeveloper ToolsEnterprise Software
Fetch operates a marketplace connecting people with nearby trucks available for rental through a mobile app, offering on-demand booking and smartphone-based access as an alternative to traditional rental services.
ConsumerLogistics & Supply ChainMarketplacesMobility & TransportationAtlanta, US
Harbinger Motors designs and manufactures electric vehicles built on medium-duty platforms for commercial and industrial transportation.
CleantechHardwareMobility & TransportationGarden Grove, US
John Harris(Chief Executive Officer & CoFounder)Ryan Clinton(Director)Phillip Weicker(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)Benjamin Dusastre(Executive Officer)William Eberts(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)
BoardGilbert Passin(Director)
Thermo Fisher Scientific operates a commercial platform for registered customers, distributors, and authorized representatives to purchase products and services in the life sciences sector.
BiotechEnterprise SoftwareHealthtech
JuliaHub provides a cloud-based SaaS platform for scientific and technical computing, offering development, deployment, and scaling capabilities for Julia programs along with specialized tools for pharmaceutical modeling, multi-physics simulation, and circuit design.
AI & Machine LearningCloud ComputingData & InfrastructureDeep TechBoston, US
Viral Shah(Executive Officer, Director)inAlan EdelmanJeff BezansoninStefan Karpinski(Director)inDeepak Vinchhi(Executive Officer, Director)inDaniel Freeman(Director)
LILA Sciences builds AI systems for autonomous scientific research and discovery across medicine, materials, energy, and defense sectors.
AI & Machine LearningBiotechDeep TechSaaS
Lyzr builds infrastructure and platforms for deploying production-grade AI agents in enterprises, with emphasis on governance, security, observability, and human oversight.
AI & Machine LearningDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwareSaaSJersey City, US
Siva Surendira(Founder & CEO)Surendirasiva Selvaraj(Executive Officer, Director)Henry Ford III(Director)
BoardMadhu Shalini Iyer(Director)
Mueon builds data center-scale infrastructure designed to support next-generation artificial intelligence workloads.
AI & Machine LearningCloud ComputingDeep Tech
Noble Gas Systems develops and manufactures conformable high-pressure gas storage vessels for transportation and stationary applications in commercial, aerospace, and defense markets.
Advanced ManufacturingCleantechDefense TechEnergyHardwareNew MaterialsWixom, US
Chris Kondogiani(CEO)Andrew R. Hinkly(Director)Olga Alavanou(Director)
BoardAndrew Hinkly(Director)Jerome Breteau(Director)Matthew L. Hoffman(Director)
Ocient builds petabyte-scale agentic AI solutions through its OcientAIQ platform for enterprises managing massive datasets.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureEnterprise SoftwareChicago, US
George Kondiles(Executive Officer)S. Christopher Gladwin(Executive Officer, Director)Kumar Abhijeet(Executive Officer)William McCarthy(Executive Officer)Joseph Jablonski(Executive Officer)
BoardJames Dugan(Director)
Prometheus Hyperscale builds next-generation, liquid-cooled hyperscale data centers powered by clean energy for AI and the digital economy.
AI & Machine LearningCleantechCloud ComputingData & InfrastructureEnergyWyoming, US
Trenton Thornock(Founder and Senior Advisor)
RedSeal provides a platform for network visibility and cybersecurity compliance that maps and analyzes hybrid environments including on-premises and cloud infrastructure to identify vulnerabilities and attack pathways.
AI & Machine LearningCybersecurityEnterprise SoftwareSunnyvale, US
Greg Enriquez(CEO)Kevin Mosher(Director)Peter Sinclair(Executive Officer, Director)Steve Goldberg(Director)Tench Coxe(Director)Leslie Canning(Executive Officer)
Rune Technologies provides AI and software solutions for logistics and sustainment operations, serving military and defense organizations.
AI & Machine LearningDefense TechLogistics & Supply Chain
David Tuttle(Chief Executive Officer)inPeter Goldsborough(Chief Technology Officer)inKyle Haire(Head of Growth)in
Sedai provides autonomous cloud optimization software that automatically manages cloud infrastructure, reducing operational overhead and costs for enterprise customers.
AI & Machine LearningCloud ComputingDeveloper ToolsEnterprise SoftwarePalo Alto, US
Suresh Mathew(Founder & CEO)Benji Thomas(Co-founder & CTO)
Sila Nanotechnologies engineers next-generation battery materials, particularly silicon anodes, for use in electric vehicles, wearables, and other energy-intensive applications.
Deep TechEnergyHardwareNew MaterialsSan Jose, US
Gleb Yushin(Co-Founder & CTO)Gene Berdichevsky(Executive Officer, Director)O. Abbey Omokhodion(Executive Officer)Warren DeSouza(Executive Officer)Victor Miller(Director)
BoardMichael L. Speiser(Director)
RSA provides an AI-powered unified identity platform for organizations to manage authentication, access control, identity governance, and lifecycle management.
AI & Machine LearningCybersecurityEnterprise SoftwareSaaSBurlington, US
Siren is a data search and intelligence platform that connects disparate data sources and enables advanced queries on billions of records for national security, law enforcement, and corporate fraud investigations.
CybersecurityData & InfrastructureDefense TechEnterprise SoftwareGovTech
SkySafe provides a drone detection and airspace intelligence platform that enables organizations to detect drone activity in real-time, analyze threats, and generate forensic evidence for law enforcement response.
CybersecurityDefense TechIoTSan Diego, US
Scott Torborg(Director)Grant Jordan(Executive Officer, Director)Melissa Swisher(Executive Officer)Tarak Makecha(Executive Officer)Steve McQuade(Executive Officer)Michael Spindel(Executive Officer)
Sofar operates an ocean monitoring network and analytics platform serving maritime shipping companies and marine researchers.
CleantechClimate TechData & InfrastructureDeep TechHealthtechIoTSan Francisco, US
Tim Janssen, PhD(Co-Founder and CEO)inTim Janssen(Executive Officer, Director)Evan Shapiro(Chief R&D Officer)inAnke Pierik(Director)Willilam Locke(Director)
BoardJon Callaghan(Director)
Starcloud designs and deploys data centers in space to support hyperscale computing workloads, leveraging continuous solar energy and radiative cooling for gigawatt-scale AI training clusters.
Advanced ManufacturingAI & Machine LearningClimate TechCloud ComputingDeep TechSpace TechSeattle, US
Philip Johnston(Founder/CEO)inEzra Feilden(Founder)inAdi Oltean(Founder)in
Fonontech develops advanced semiconductor and microelectronics manufacturing technology using additive manufacturing techniques to create smaller, more efficient components with significantly reduced environmental impact and energy consumption.
CleantechHardwareSemiconductorsEindhoven, NL
Swoop operates global drone transport networks and aircraft to provide seamless aerial access in remote and inaccessible areas, with a focus on reducing carbon emissions and enabling delivery services.
HardwareLogistics & Supply ChainMobility & Transportation
Synchron develops brain-computer interface technology delivered via catheter to restore or improve motor and cognitive function in people with impairment or decline.
BiotechDeep TechMedical DevicesCampbell, US
Thomas James Oxley(Executive Officer, Director)Martin Dieck(Director)Nicholas Opie(Director)Rahul Sharma(Director)Alex Morgan(Director)
Universal Quantum develops quantum computers using trapped ion technology designed to solve complex computational problems in drug design, climate modeling, battery chemistry, and other fields.
Deep TechQuantum Computing
Sebastian Weidt(CEO)Winfried Hensinger
Company producing world's first multi-material 3D printer capable of printing functional features with variable material properties.
Somerville, US
Jennifer A. Lewis(Executive Officer, Director)Clinton Bybee(Director)
BoardJiong Ma(Director)
Frequently asked questions
- What stage does In-Q-Tel invest at?
- In-Q-Tel invests at the Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Growth stages.
- What is In-Q-Tel's typical check size?
- In-Q-Tel typically writes checks of $100K – $2.5M.
- What sectors does In-Q-Tel focus on?
- In-Q-Tel focuses on AI & Machine Learning, Biotech, Cybersecurity, Deep Tech, Defense Tech, Sector Agnostic, Semiconductors, Space Tech.
- Where is In-Q-Tel located?
- In-Q-Tel is headquartered in Tysons, US.
- Does In-Q-Tel lead rounds?
- In-Q-Tel typically participates in rounds rather than leading them.
Media · Podcasts & interviews
featuring the team
In-Q-Tel CEO Steve Bowsher on BioTech Revolution | Tech'ed Up Shorts with host Niki Christoff - YouTube
Tech'ed Up · Steve Bowsher · youtube.com
In-Q-Tel CEO Steve Bowsher & VC Kirsten Bartok on Funding America’s Defense Tech Future - YouTube
Austin For America · Steve Bowsher
The Journey from Government Consulting to CEO of In-Q-Tel with Steve Bowsher - YouTube
Second Front · Steve Bowsher
Stanford Seminar - Silicon Valley & The U.S. Government: In-Q-Tel’s Steve Bowsher - YouTube
Stanford Online · Steve Bowsher · youtube.com
How the CIA is tapping private sector ingenuity that’s reshaping the world | Steve Bowsher In-Q-Tel - YouTube
The Washington Times · Steve Bowsher
Images
Co-investors · 20
Sequoia Capital is a venture capital firm that partners with founders to build technology companies, with a strong current focus on artificial intelligence.
GV (Google Ventures) is a venture capital firm that has invested in artificial intelligence and machine learning companies since its early days, building a global portfolio spanning AI infrastructure, life sciences, and applications.
Lightspeed Venture Partners is a global venture capital firm known for backing AI and technology founders, emphasizing deep, hands-on partnerships with the companies it funds.
Greylock Partners is a venture capital firm that backs founders at the earliest stages, often as their first investor before a product exists.
Canaan is an early-stage venture capital firm backing founders with transformative ideas across technology and healthcare.
F-Prime Capital Partners is a venture capital firm whose team of scientists, engineers, physicians, operators, and investors supports companies in scaling and accelerating growth.
US Venture Partners (USVP) is an early-stage venture capital firm investing in information technology and healthcare companies, with four decades of investing experience.
Citi Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of Citi, based in Palo Alto with additional offices in New York, Shanghai, and Singapore. The unit makes equity investments and develops innovations that align with Citi's strategic priorities, working with both internal business units and external companies.
ARCH Venture Partners is a venture capital firm that backs and helps build transformational companies, with a strong focus on the life sciences and biotech sector.
OurCrowd is an online private markets investment platform that gives accredited and high-net-worth investors access to pre-vetted startup deals, targeted venture funds, and alternative assets such as private equity and private credit.
Decibel is a venture firm built by founders and operators, backing early-stage technology companies.
Lead Edge Capital is a growth equity firm managing $9 billion in assets, investing in software, internet, and tech-enabled businesses.
▶8 more co-investors
Blackbird VenturesMMC VenturesTrucks VCFoothill VenturesState of Mind VenturesArthur VenturesRefinery VentureTFX Capital
Firms observed investing alongside In-Q-Tel, from public investor directories.
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