# Bryon Hargis

> Bryon Hargis is the co-founder and CEO of Castelion, a U.S. defense manufacturer developing Blackbeard hypersonic weapons for affordable production at scale. A mechanical engineering and applied physics graduate, he previously worked at Johns Hopkins APL, OmniEarth and SpaceX, where his national security satellite work included Starshield.

- **Role:** Co-Founder and CEO at Castelion
- **Organizations:** Castelion, SpaceX, OmniEarth, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
- **Education:** B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, M.S. in Applied Physics, Johns Hopkins University
- **Known for:** Helped develop SpaceX’s Starshield national security satellite business., Co-founded Castelion, a winner alongside Specter Aerospace of the 2024 Hyper-AMPD prize challenge., Led Castelion through a financing package announced as a $1 billion Series C at a $13 billion company valuation in August 2026.

## Career timeline

- **2002** — Joined Johns Hopkins APL after graduating from Georgia Tech; subsequently served as a senior technical staff member and program manager.
- **Mid-2010s** — Worked at OmniEarth on product definition, business development and sales.
- **2017** — Joined SpaceX in early 2017; worked in government sales and national security satellite programs.
- **2022** — Co-founded Castelion in late 2022 with Sean Pitt and Andrew Kreitz.
- **2025** — Castelion closed a $350 million Series B in December.
- **2026** — Project Ranger broke ground in January; Castelion announced Series C financing in August and a Navy production order in September.

## Achievements

- Helped develop SpaceX’s Starshield national security satellite business.
- Co-founded Castelion, a winner alongside Specter Aerospace of the 2024 Hyper-AMPD prize challenge.
- Led Castelion through a financing package announced as a $1 billion Series C at a $13 billion company valuation in August 2026.
- Castelion received a September 2026 Navy production delivery order valued at up to $200 million.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Navy production delivery order for Blackbeard valued at up to $200 million announced.
- **2026-08** — Castelion announced an $800 million equity financing plus a $250 million committed revolving credit facility, described as a $1 billion Series C, at a $13 billion company valuation.
- **2026-06** — Castelion and Saronic announced a planned 2027 maritime launch demonstration.
- **2026-01** — Project Ranger manufacturing campus groundbreaking in Sandoval County, New Mexico.

## Links

- Website: https://www.castelion.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hargsb
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/hargsb

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/bryon-hargis
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-23