Zipline raises $1.5bn at $21.5bn as Walmart plans up to 300 more drone sites

Zipline announced on November 5, 2026 that it has raised $1.5 billion at a $21.5 billion post-money valuation. Paradigm, WCM Investment Management and Layer Global led the round, with Valor Equity Partners, Fidelity, Uber, Tiger Global, J.P. Morgan, ARK Invest and Salesforce Ventures participating, TechCrunch reported. Zipline and Walmart also expanded their partnership, planning up to 300 additional delivery sites beyond the 21 operating as of November 5.

Why it matters: it is one of the largest private rounds for an autonomous-robot operator this year, and it is priced on a retail rollout rather than on a technology milestone. The valuation is about 2.8 times the $7.6 billion Zipline carried in January, when it raised more than $600 million.

What is the money for?

Zipline said the funds will go to expanding US manufacturing of its drones, hiring and building a nationwide delivery network. The Next Web reported that Uber, an investor in the round, is targeting a million drone deliveries a day with Zipline by 2029. Zipline has not said how many drones it builds today or how many deliveries it completes per day.

How does it compare with other autonomy rounds?

At $1.5 billion, the round is larger than Bedrock Robotics’ $600 million Series C for retrofitted excavators in October and Reliable Robotics’ $115 million for aircraft autonomy. Sold at $21.5 billion, a $1.5 billion raise works out to about 7% of the company, by our arithmetic.