Onebrief Raised $50 Million To iImprove Military Planning, And The Pentagon Is Taking Notice

The company is developing deployment solutions for resilient networks, offline capabilities, and an AI-powered Co-Planner to help military personnel.

For decades, military operational planning has been a tedious process, with teams sifting through interminable PowerPoint presentations, manually updating plans, and straining to stay up with changing scenarios. It was not only inefficient, but also hazardous. Critical choices were based on obsolete documents, resulting in delays and confusion in instances where every second counts.

Grant Demaree witnessed this truth firsthand while serving as a captain in the United States Army. Grant’s first exposure to large-scale planning occurred as a young lieutenant in Liberia during the Ebola epidemic. Later, when serving with SOJTF-OIR in Iraq, he learnt how difficult it was to change advanced operational plans on the fly. Frustrated by the inefficiencies he saw, he started sketching out the idea for Onebrief.  In 2019, he co-founded Onebrief with Rafa Pereira, a software platform that aims to minimise inefficiencies and modernise military decision-making. Initially, it was difficult to persuade senior officials that software could replace old workflows. But persistence paid off.  In 2021, the firm participated in Y Combinator, raised early funding through LinkedIn cold messages to majors and colonels, and gradually established itself within the Pentagon.

Fast forward to now, and Onebrief is no longer an unknown startup. The company just raised a $50 million Series C investment headed by General Catalyst and Insight Partners, with Caffeinated Capital, 9Yards Capital, and Human Capital joining. With a total of $103 million raised and a current worth of $650 million, Onebrief demonstrates that military planning is long ready for change.

Demaree doesn’t mince words about what’s at stake. “Simply put, changing operational planning will win the war,” he says. “This funding and our new partnerships enable us to drive meaningful change across our institutions.”

From Weeks to Hours—Why the Pentagon Is Paying Attention

Onebrief isn’t just another defence tech company; it’s already in use at US military headquarters, managing three of the world’s four largest operational plans (OPLANs). Instead of having employees manually update slides, Onebrief’s platform can automatically populate updates across various teams in real time. During a recent drill, a Pentagon unit attempted to revise a military strategy that would normally take weeks. “They completely redid it in less than three hours,” Demaree claims.

For investors like General Catalyst’s Paul Kwan, the impact is clear. “At General Catalyst, our goal is to help modernize our nation’s defense,” Kwan says. He first met Demaree two years ago and was struck by Onebrief’s approach. “My partners, Lt. Gen. USAF (Ret) Scott Howell and Matt Byington, quickly recognized the benefits Onebrief brings at every level. We’re thrilled to partner with Onebrief and assist them in making warfighters and military staffs more efficient and effective.”

Nick Sinai of Insight Partners sees Onebrief’s success as part of a larger shift. “Innovation in defense technology is critical for ensuring global stability and security,” he says. The platform, he believes, could fundamentally reshape how military leaders make decisions.

The company’s employment has risen by about 130% in the last year, and this trend isn’t decreasing. New leadership appointments also indicate ambition.

Former Acting Secretary of Defence Chris C. Miller has joined Onebrief’s Board of Directors, bringing with him experience managing almost three million military personnel. Miller is open about what Onebrief could have meant during his own time in service. “Onebrief is the capability I dreamed of in my early military career,” according to him. “This is the tool I wanted to provide our fielded forces.”

Lieutenant General (Ret) Lewis Craparotta, USMC, has also moved from a senior advisory role to a full board seat. His experience leading Marine Forces Pacific gives him a deep understanding of the need for global coordination, something he believes Onebrief can deliver. “We have a novel opportunity to enable true global collaboration and integration,” he says.

Meanwhile, the company has brought on Devesh Senapati as Vice President of Product. With a background at Stripe, Bain Capital Ventures, and McKinsey & Company, Senapati is expected to drive Onebrief’s platform forward, particularly with his experience in product development.

AI, Automation, and a New Model for Defense Tech

Beyond immediate expansion, Onebrief is investing in next-generation capabilities. The company is developing deployment solutions for resilient networks, offline capabilities, and an AI-powered Co-Planner to help military personnel. Demaree has even more ambitious plans: AI-powered wargaming for Course-of-Action (COA) creation, which would allow military leaders to test strategies before implementing them in real-world scenarios.

“This is about making military decision-making smarter, faster, and more adaptable,” Demaree explains. With the US government’s increased emphasis on AI and operational efficiency, Onebrief’s function in modern defence infrastructure is becoming even more important.

The corporation is also ensuring that its employees benefit from its success. A newly released Tender Offer will let early workers to sell their shares on the secondary market, demonstrating Onebrief’s dedication to individuals who helped create the firm from the bottom up.

Demaree puts it simply: “We’re developing a tool that will transform how military headquarters operate. Our software will enable faster, more informed military judgements in order to prevent genuine catastrophes from occurring again and to maintain the dominance of the US-led alliance system over its totalitarian competitors.”

Chris Miller reflects this sentiment, emphasising the overall vision. “The goal is this becomes the standard,” according to him. “That’s the argument I’m making to these [Pentagon] folks.”

Miller also sees Onebrief fitting into a bigger push for government efficiency, even hinting at a potential role in Elon Musk’s DOGE initiative. “I really think it’ll be self-explanatory,” he says.

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Picture of Anshika Mathews
Anshika Mathews
Anshika is the Senior Content Strategist for AIM Research. She holds a keen interest in technology and related policy-making and its impact on society. She can be reached at anshika.mathews@aimresearch.co
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