The verified answer
As of Sep 2026, DEPLOY verifies Hop Aero: 1 model, $3.0M raised. 3 sources back the record.
CategoryDrones
Overview
Hop Aero is a Y combinator S26 startup building autonomous hypersonic cargo rockets for point-to-point delivery to contested environments. Its vehicle, Rook, delivers 250 kg (550 lbs) of cargo up to 750 km (450 miles) in approximately 15 minutes — faster than any existing transportation method.
Rook launches from a standard 40-foot shipping container and lands on unprepared surfaces, requiring no runways or fixed infrastructure. The company has won a $1.25M US Air Force contract and completed tethered flight testing of its prototype.
Verified record
- Verified deployments
- None on file
- Active incidents
- None on file
Valuation of record
Company-claimedPriced roundPre-Seed post-money
Key facts
CTO & Co-founder
YC Batch
Fundingsee investors →
Air Force contract
Team size
Payload
Range
Flight time
Launch method
Landing
Speed class
Milestones
Use case
Data & sources
Web sources
3
3 sources backing this record.View all →
Models (1)
View all models →Partnerships
Every company Hop Aero has built with, alongside the ones only announced in a press release.
Most-frequent partners
- 1US Air Force1× joint
Most recent
- with US Air Forceoperating
Hop Aero on the deployment map
View the global mapHop Aero has no verified deployments on the DEPLOY registry yet. Explore the deployment map by place and type.
No verified deployments for Hop Aero on the DEPLOY record yet. Track Hop Aero to know the moment the first one is verified.
Relationships
Current leadership (2)
- Matija Milenovic Founder & CEO, Co-foundersecondary-verified
- Jacob Balaj Co-founder & CTO, Co-foundersecondary-verified
Founders (2)
- Jacob Balajcofounderno longer at company
- Matija Milenoviccofounderno longer at company
Safety record
No incidents on record for Hop Aero.
Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.
Full safety record: incidents, sourcing, and exposure data →
Recent coverage
Hop Aero in third-party press
Peer companies
- Amazon25 models
- Anduril Industries7 models
- DJI7 models
- Autel Robotics4 models
- Baykar4 models
- Earendil Robotics4 models
Financial state
- Total funding
- $3.0M
- Reporting basis
- private_reported
- Lifecycle stage
- early
- Counterparty risk class
- unknown
Each numeric field carries its own basis marker. Aggregators report a number; this surface preserves the source class so verification depth travels with the value.
Partnerships
1 total · 1 operating
Every company Hop Aero has built with, alongside the ones only announced in a press release.
Most recent
- with US Air Forceoperating
Most-frequent partners
- 1US Air Force1× joint
All 1 partnerships
open in the atlas →- Hop Aero x US Air Force (Rocket Cargo SBIR)withUS Air Forcedevelopment2026-01-01operating
Funding rounds (1)
- Pre-Seed
$3M(reported) · $9M post
Investors: Y Combinator
Timeline
Every recorded move in Hop Aero’s history, most recent first: funding rounds, partnerships, acquisitions, supply-chain starts, key hires, and press.
PartnershipHop Aero x US Air Force (Rocket Cargo SBIR)
2026-01-01Hop Aero won a $1.25M Department of the Air Force (DoW) SBIR contract for rocket cargo delivery to contested environments. The contract supports development of the Rook hypersonic cargo vehicle for military logistics.
Recent activity
Every change to this record is dated, sourced, and independently verified where marked.
- Record createdJul 28, 2026
Added to the verified registry
Sources (3)
- Hop Aero: Rocket cargo delivery to contested environments · https://www.ycombinator.com/companies/hop-aero · 2026-07-28
- Hop Aero: company website · https://hop-aero.com/ · 2026-07-28
- Matija Milenovic: Founder of Hop Aero · https://x.com/milenovic925501 · 2026-07-28
Common questions
What is Hop Aero?
What does Hop Aero make?
Is Hop Aero publicly traded?
Who competes with Hop Aero?
Who is the CEO of Hop Aero?
How can I invest in Hop Aero?
Where is Hop Aero headquartered?
How much funding has Hop Aero raised?
Who owns Hop Aero?
Where does Hop Aero operate robots?
Is Hop Aero a top robotics company?
When was Hop Aero founded?
Is Hop Aero safe?
Methodology: Verified · 3 sources (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-08-21
Verification posture
Verified
Low confidence
Review state
Stable
Last reviewed 2026-08-21
Sources by quality tier
- 3
- unclassified
- Unclassified source
The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.
Methodology surface for Hop Aero.Peer companies
- Amazon25 models
- Anduril Industries7 models
- DJI7 models
- Autel Robotics4 models
- Baykar4 models
- Earendil Robotics4 models
In the press
Recent coverage mentioning Hop Aero from third-party publications. Automatically surfaced; not part of the verified registry record.
Hop Aero Wants to Deliver Cargo via Rocket
Hop Aero launched on Y Combinator this week with their autonomous suborbital rocket: Rook. The post Hop Aero Wants to Deliver Cargo via Rocket appeared first on Payload .
Introducing Rook by Hop Aero (YC S26): autonomous hypersonic cargo rocket
Hop Aero launches out of stealth with Rook, an autonomous hypersonic cargo rocket delivering 550 lbs up to 450 miles in ~15 minutes from a standard shipping container.
Hop Aero (YC S26) is building Rook, an autonomous hypersonic cargo rocket
Y Combinator announces Hop Aero's Rook: autonomous hypersonic cargo rocket delivering 250 kg up to 750 km in ~15 minutes. Won $1.25M US Air Force contract, completed tethered…
Machine-readable surfaces
- Markdown mirror: /companies/hop-aero.md
- RSS feed: /companies/hop-aero/feed.xml
- JSON-LD: embedded in this page’s head
- REST API: /v1/companies/63348d1e-1f0b-41a1-9e4a-7b2193c5c627
- Revision history: /companies/hop-aero/history
- Data documentation: /data
- Query this programmatically: Deploy MCP
Peer companies
- Amazon25 models
- Anduril Industries7 models
- DJI7 models
- Autel Robotics4 models
- Baykar4 models
- Earendil Robotics4 models
Video
BLOCKCHAIN.AERO — The world's 1st blockchain-platform for mass urban aviation. We build a new market for urban flights on flying cars. We automate charging, ma
Heat Index
Category contender77/100
A composite of competitive footprint, funding, press velocity, active partnerships, and supply-chain edges. Different from the Intelligence score below (which is per-form-factor productization). Non-robotics companies cap at 25.
Reality vs attention
Hop Aero draws attention at the 51st percentile but verifies reality at the insufficient-data level among aerial robots.
6-month trend
Analysis
Limited public funding data for capital position assessment.
Dimension breakdown
Verified signal
Attention (reach, not merit)
DEPLOY Intelligence scores are computed from verified registry data: confirmed deployments, disclosed funding rounds, regulatory filings, active job listings, video viewership, and press coverage. Confidence ratings reflect data availability. Scores update nightly.
DEPLOY Indices — verified vs claimed
Last computed: Sep 11, 2026