Zipline has raised $1.5 billion at a $21.5 billion post-money valuation, nearly tripling the $7.6 billion it carried after a January round2. Paradigm, WCM Investment Management, and Layer Global led the round, with Valor Equity Partners, Fidelity Management Research Company, Uber, Tiger Global, J.P. Morgan, ARK Invest, and Salesforce Ventures also participating.
Alongside the raise, Walmart signed a national multi-year agreement to launch 300 additional Zipline drone delivery sites.
The 300-site commitment dwarfs Walmart's existing drone delivery program. As of May, Walmart's entire drone operation across both Zipline and Wing ran from 66 stores in four states, when the retailer marked its millionth delivery. The new Zipline agreement alone is more than four times that footprint, with what Zipline described as potential to grow further. Zipline's Walmart business until now consisted of one metro area and one Arkansas hub.
The $21.5 billion valuation exceeds the $20 billion figure Bloomberg reported when the talks surfaced in September. Zipline plans to direct the funds toward US manufacturing and hiring to build what it calls a nationwide drone delivery network. CEO Keller Cliffton said the company's rising valuation is a sign that autonomous delivery has gained wider acceptance1.
ANALYSIS The Walmart deal converts a retailer that was testing drone delivery at modest scale into a committed national partner, giving Zipline a concrete demand anchor for the manufacturing capacity the new capital is meant to build.