Warhound raises $200M to engineer working dogs with Anduril gear

The company is targeting dogs that perform tasks dangerous for humans or difficult for machines, such as bomb detection, searches and other specialized operations. In its launch announcement, Warhound said more than 80% of the working dogs used by the U.S. military come from Europe and less than half of them are fit for service. It cited a dwindling supply of such dogs and growing U.S. reliance on foreign nations for animals that play an important role in the military and law enforcement. Warhound said it hopes Colossal can use its technology to engineer dogs with “characteristics suited to demanding missions.”

Lamm told TechCrunch he met Luckey about a year ago at a conference, where the Anduril co-founder brought up doing more for working dogs in the U.S. military. The two kept in touch, and Lamm did more research, learning about breeding issues. Many dogs do not make it through training because of genetic dispositions for issues such as poor eyesight or high possibilities of cancer, hip dysplasia or muscle atrophy, according to the report.

Lamm said he believed dogs could be enhanced for health, longevity and “for things like speed and agility or enhance olfactory sensors for bomb sniffing and whatnot.” His team looked at top-performing working dog breeds—the Belgian Malinois and German Shepherd—taking cell lines from them and putting them in a biobank. From there, they will edit genes, adding those that will make the dogs perform better while taking out ones that will not, to create “a new type of dog.”

Anduril will provide software and hardware enhancements for items such as dog protection vests and eye goggles to assist dogs and handlers with situational awareness and coordination. Lamm described, for example, bulletproof vests with data sensors that give information back to handlers so they can better understand what is happening. “The idea is, if we make the dog safer, make it healthier, make it perform better, it’s going to perform better in the line of duty,” Lamm said. He added that Anduril’s additions aim to make the dogs safer and healthier outside their genetic components, “on top of the dog, not in the dog.” He said such enhancements would also better protect the dogs’ human handlers.

Luckey does not own equity in Warhound and is only a partner, Lamm told TechCrunch. Colossal owns equity in the business and supports it by licensing its technology, according to the report. Colossal is known for de-extinction efforts involving animals such as the dodo and the mammoth. Lamm has said the company uses AI and buys and builds technology to help with gene cloning and the identification and reproduction of animal genes.

The first batch of dogs is about to be cloned and incubated and is expected to be born early next year, ideally entering service within the next two years, Lamm said. Viagen, another company owned by Colossal, is partnering with Warhound to help clone the dogs. Lamm said Viagen’s technology has a high success rate with cloning and that Colossal currently uses it in a program to help protect endangered species.

Warhound does not yet know how much it will charge for the dogs but expects to sell to first responders, the Department of Defense, military service groups and police forces, according to TechCrunch. Lamm said the company has briefed many government groups about the business. On civilian responsibility and safety, he said the dogs will be trained like any military working dog and will be managed by whoever buys them.

The company said it is working under the guidance of the American Humane Society to help certify Warhound’s training program for the newly created dogs that will enter service. Warhound also hopes that when the dogs retire, they will enter the Society’s Military Working Dog Reunification Program, which provides a home for retired military dogs, or another program the society offers to help dogs.

Editor's Summary

Warhound has raised $200 million at a $1.2 billion valuation to develop genetically engineered working dogs and Anduril-supplied gear for military, law enforcement and emergency use. The first cloned dogs are expected early next year, with service targeted within two years, while pricing has not been set and the company has briefed government groups. The venture combines Colossal’s gene-editing and cloning work with Anduril’s hardware and software, with training and post-service care guided by the American Humane Society.