Tiberius lands $500M deal for its ramjet artillery shell

Tiberius Aerospace, a California company developing a ramjet-powered 155 mm artillery shell, says it has signed a $500 million contract to manufacture, license and distribute the round known as Sceptre. The company announced the deal on Oct. 1 but did not name its U.K. technology partners, the payer, how the money will be split, how many rounds are covered, which armed forces would buy them, or when production would begin. Tiberius said the effort falls under a Technical Assistance Agreement authorized by the U.S. State Department under ITAR. Sceptre is designed for longer reach, using liquid-fueled ramjet propulsion to push much of its flight, and Tiberius claims up to 150 km at about Mach 3.5. Company claims aren’t yet demonstrated in full-range tests. A major milestone came in April 2026 when it achieved ramjet ignition in flight after firing from a NATO-standard howitzer in New Mexico. Tiberius also described a “Defense-as-a-Service” approach, backed by an AI software platform called GRAIL.