SEATTLE — Watchtower Labs has raised $35 million in seed funding to develop AI software for military logistics and operational planning. Shield Capital and Conviction led the financing round, with participation from Founders Fund.
The Seattle-based company announced its public launch on October 21 after operating in stealth.
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AI software models military logistics constraints
Watchtower is initially focusing on military sustainment, which involves transporting personnel and delivering the supplies needed to support operations. Logistics planners must account for fuel, ammunition, spare parts, transportation capacity and delivery routes. A change in one area can affect other parts of a mission, requiring planners to reconsider schedules and available resources.
Watchtower's platform combines AI, simulation and optimization tools to evaluate hundreds of possible scenarios. The software develops potential courses of action and presents the assumptions behind its recommendations.
Users can enter questions in everyday language to explore planning options. The system aims to support human decision-making rather than independently authorize operational actions.
Defense partnerships support development
Watchtower began working with the Naval Postgraduate School in 2025 to inform its software development. The collaboration draws on operations research, defense expertise and data relevant to military planning.
In January 2026, the Defense Innovation Unit selected the company for its Joint Sustainment Decision Tool program, which focuses on decision-support capabilities for operational and joint commands.
Watchtower was incubated within Shield Capital. Its founders include CEO Akhil Iyer, a former Marine special operations officer and Shield Capital investor, and former Microsoft engineering leaders Souren Aghajanyan and John Morman. The company plans to use the new funding to hire employees, develop additional applications and continue testing and deploying its software.
Although military logistics remains its initial focus, Watchtower intends to expand the platform into other areas of operational planning. The company did not provide a timeline for those additional applications.
