Vulcan Elements

Vulcan Elements was founded in 2023 by John Maslin, a former U.S. Navy officer, and Piotr Kulik, and is based in Durham, North Carolina. It makes sintered neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) permanent magnets at a facility in Research Triangle Park that opened on March 31, 2025, and sells them to defense and commercial customers for drones, satellites, robotics, electric motors, semiconductor equipment and AI data centers. On August 11, 2025 it raised a $65 million Series A led by Altimeter Capital, with One Investment Management participating. On November 3, 2025 it announced a $1.4 billion partnership with the U.S. government and refiner ReElement Technologies that includes a $620 million direct loan from the Department of War's Office of Strategic Capital, $50 million of Commerce Department CHIPS Act equity and $550 million of private capital, with the Department of War receiving warrants. On November 18, 2025 it picked Benson, North Carolina, for a $1 billion plant with 10,000 metric tons a year of magnet capacity and about 1,000 jobs.