June 12, 2026
Fast Company profiles Chariot Defense as a startup adapting electric-vehicle technology for the battlefield. In an interview republished from the Laser Wars newsletter, founder and CEO Adam Warmoth explains that advances in high-voltage batteries and silicon carbide power electronics from EVs and electric aircraft had not reached defense, and how Chariot built its Amphora systems to deliver modular, low-signature power for radios, drones, sensors, and directed-energy weapons.
The piece notes that the Amphora 24 is already being sold and scaled for production, while the Amphora 400 moves from pilot toward production. Warmoth frames Chariot's approach as "batteries as power, not batteries as energy": hybrid systems in which batteries handle the surges lasers demand while generators supply steady energy. The article also covers Chariot's $34 million Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz and its demonstrations with directed-energy partner Aurelius Systems, including live drone shootdowns.