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Archer Aviation’s February 2025 raise was a $301.75 million expected gross equity offering—not a defense contract or customer payment. The company said it would use part of the proceeds to develop manufacturing capabilities for its hybrid aircraft platform, including batteries and composites, and the rest for general corporate purposes. The defense effort later took shape publicly as Thunder, a platform Archer is developing with Anduril; as of their July 2026 announcement, Thunder’s first flight was planned for 2027.
What Archer raised in February 2025
Archer announced an expected $301.75 million in gross proceeds from a registered direct offering on February 11, 2025. The company agreed to sell 35.5 million Class A shares at $8.50 per share. The announcement’s headline rounded the amount to $300 million. Archer’s financing announcement said funds and accounts managed by BlackRock participated.
Because this was a share offering, it brought in equity capital rather than revenue from selling aircraft or winning a military contract. The $301.75 million figure was expected gross proceeds; the company said the transaction remained subject to customary closing conditions and expenses.
What Archer said the proceeds would fund
Archer said the money would accelerate development of its hybrid aircraft platform for defense and other markets. It planned to invest in next-generation aircraft manufacturing capabilities, naming batteries and composites, and use the balance for general corporate purposes.
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Archer had announced Archer Defense in December 2024 to develop next-generation aircraft for defense applications. At the time of the raise, the company described its first planned product as a hybrid-propulsion vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. Those statements described plans and intended uses for the capital, not a completed aircraft, delivery, procurement or entry into service.
How the defense aircraft plan developed into Thunder
In July 2026, Archer and Anduril unveiled a jointly developed autonomous series-hybrid VTOL platform. Anduril presented Thunder as the defense variant, intended for missions alongside current and next-generation crewed attack and assault aircraft. Archer said it and Anduril had completed multiple test flights using full-scale surrogate aircraft; the announcement said Thunder’s first flight was planned for 2027. Surrogate-aircraft tests are not the same milestone as a flight by Thunder itself. The joint announcement does not establish that Thunder had flown, received a defense procurement award or entered operational service.
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Thunder and Halo: defense and commercial variants
Two days later, Archer identified Halo as the commercial variant of the dual-use platform and named Marubeni Aerospace Corporation as its strategic launch partner. Archer said Halo and Thunder share an airframe, hybrid powertrain and core systems, while payload can be configured for the mission. The announcements identify intended roles and shared systems, but do not provide a comparable set of validated performance figures for the two variants. Archer’s Halo announcement describes the commercial variant.
How to read Archer’s liquidity figures
Archer’s February 2025 announcement referred to an approximately $1 billion liquidity position. That was a company estimate calculated using cash at September 30, 2024, preliminary fourth-quarter results and gross proceeds from two raises in December 2024 and February 2025. It did not deduct cash used after January 1, 2025 or expenses for the February offering, so it should not be read as net proceeds or as a current balance.
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In its August 10, 2026 second-quarter release, Archer reported $1,560.6 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments at June 30, 2026. This is a later, dated balance with a stated composition, not a restatement of the earlier estimate. The same release said Archer had agreed to acquire Boeing subsidiaries Wisk Aero, Insitu and SkyGrid, subject to closing conditions. Archer estimated Insitu would add more than $200 million in annual revenue based on Insitu’s current financials and estimates; the agreement and estimate are separate from the 2025 raise, and the stated revenue was not presented as realized. Archer’s Q2 2026 results filed as an SEC exhibit provide these later figures and transaction details.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the raise does—and does not—show
The financing shows that Archer sought public-market equity to fund manufacturing capability and aircraft-platform development, including defense applications. It does not, by itself, show that the military bought an aircraft, that Thunder has completed its first flight, or that the planned program will reach deployment on schedule. Archer’s subsequent announcements provide development milestones and variant descriptions, but not a Thunder procurement award.
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For context on the original headline, TechCrunch’s February 11, 2025 coverage used the rounded $300 million framing. The more precise transaction figure comes from Archer’s announcement.
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