In-Q-Tel
The U.S. intelligence community's strategic investor.
Corporate VC & StrategicsFirmUnited States & allied nations
Target market
Dual-use, defense and national-security technology startups
Geography
United States & allied nations
Overview
In-Q-Tel is the not-for-profit strategic investor founded by the CIA in 1999 to get frontier technology into the U.S. intelligence and national-security community, with early bets that included Keyhole (which became Google Earth) and Palantir. It co-invests alongside commercial VCs and pairs its capital with government pilot contracts — often the first federal revenue a defense-tech portfolio company sees.
Key facts
- Founded 1999 as the CIA's not-for-profit strategic investment arm
- Early backer of Keyhole (became Google Earth) and Palantir
- Pairs investment with government pilot and development contracts
- Co-invests alongside commercial venture firms by design