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  A Russian Air Force MiG-31K jet carries the hypersonic missile Kh-47M2 Kinzhal during a military parade. (Pavel Golovkin/AP) Others are stepping into new territory, developing hypersonic aircraft that could one day pave the way for high-speed military and commercial transport. As the Pentagon looks to begin fielding hypersonic weapons in the next few years and eyes a future that could include aircraft traveling and maneuvering at Mach 5 or higher speeds, investing in these companies could help ensure the department has a strong, diverse industrial base on which it can rely. “Our voice in the DoD lately has been: How do you use what we have built — if not the end product, all of the underlying technology and capability set — for adjacent markets?” Laurienti said. “I think the DoD [is] going a layer deeper on the capabilities of these companies, and where they can pull those threads will be really important over the next few years.” Attracting private investment Venture capitalist...

 Top 100, a ranking of the largest defense companies in the world. Ursa Major’s expertise remains in rocket propulsion, but it is now developing a portfolio of engines that can be used for Defense Department and commercial missions, as well as support a range of air-launched, space and hypersonic applications. In May, the Air Force lab awarded the company a contract to continue developing and testing two of its engines — Arroway for space and Draper for hypersonic launches. While Ursa Major’s pathway into the DoD hypersonics market isn’t typical, it’s one of many commercial and nontraditional companies looking to make inroads in a field dominated by defense contractors such as Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and RTX (formerly known as Raytheon Technologies). What they may lack in experience with major defense programs, these startups make up for with specialized expertise, private capital, and novel approaches to developing and producing hardware and software. Some, like Ursa Maj...