A Southern California defense company that got its name from a sword in the “Lord of the Rings” series is coming to Atlanta.
Anduril Industries, a startup that’s made headlines for netting large defense contacts and developing unmanned military technology, is opening up a new manufacturing and research facility in west Atlanta, according to a Thursday news release from Gov. Brian Kemp’s office. The company plans a $60 million investment and said it will create more than 180 jobs in Fulton County over the next three years.
Kemp celebrated the announcement, adding that Anduril will join Georgia’s flourishing aerospace industry. Potential incentives offered to Anduril were not immediately disclosed.
“Our highly skilled workforce will ensure Anduril Industries thrives here in the Peach State as they develop the technology that will help keep America’s Armed Forces the strongest in the world,” Kemp said in the release.
Anduril was founded by Palmer Luckey, who sold his last startup Oculus VR to Facebook for $2 billion in 2014. The 29-year-old tech industrialist, also well-known for being fired by Facebook over his fervent support of President Donald Trump, touts his company as an innovator in modern warfare and surveillance. Anduril is valued in the billions and financial backers include venture capitalist Peter Thiel.
He confirmed earlier this week that his hardware and software is currently being used in Ukraine. Luckey’s Twitter profile image features the tech entrepreneur and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Anduril is leasing more than 180,000 square feet at Allied Studios, a three-building property along Hills Place and Collier Road, west of I-75. Jamestown, the developer behind the popular Ponce City Market and Buckhead Village, owns the office space, which is currently under construction. A development timeline was not available.
The office will be home to Anduril’s subsidiary Area-I, a Georgia-based manufacturer of unmanned aircraft systems. Area-I has been active in the state for more than a decade and was acquired by Anduril last year for an undisclosed amount.
Aerospace is a vital industry in Georgia, and includes the Lockheed Martin plant in Marietta and private jet-maker Gulfstream near the Georgia coast. It’s the state’s second-largest manufacturing industry and is the state’s top export, totaling nearly $9.2 billion in 2021.
“Anduril Industries is a fantastic fit for Georgia’s aerospace and advanced manufacturing ecosystems, and Area-I’s existing connections, talent, and history will provide a strong foundation for the company’s first step into Georgia,” said Pat Wilson, the commissioner of the state Department of Economic Development.
Area-I is hiring engineers, and more information is available at anduril.com/careers.
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