From the first dot-com bubble to the present, the venture capital landscape has been rapidly evolving. As a long-time investor, I've seen this transformation first-hand. While this may only be a snapshot of the post-World War II military-industrial revolution, it provides valuable insights into the role of venture capital in developing innovative new technologies.
One area of investing that has become increasingly complex yet fascinating is dual-use investing. This type of investing focuses on technologies that have both civilian and military applications. Examples include Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Autonomous Vehicles, Augmented/Virtual Reality, Biotechnology, and Advanced Materials. At Scout, we invest in everything except biotechnology due to a lack of expertise or experience in this sector.
Our military backgrounds at Scout give us a competitive advantage in sourcing "hard-to-access" founders from the military, intelligence community, National Research Labs, and leading Research Universities with DoD funding. These founders share a vision of making the world a better, safer place through technological innovation.
One crucial aspect of dual-use investing at Scout is to understand the various sources of non-dilutive government funding. This includes grants, loans, and other incentives provided by the federal government to support the development of dual-use technologies. These funds provide free leverage to Scout's investment capital at different ratios from 1:1 matching all the way up to 1:5 within our portfolio.
At Scout, we believe that investing in dual-use technologies can have a significant impact on society. By investing in these technologies, we can help create a safer and more prosperous world. With our military backgrounds and investment expertise, we are uniquely positioned to identify and support the next generation of dual-use technology pioneers.
