A modern Western cruise missile can cost $1 million or more. An Israeli startup believes it can build one for as little as $40,000.

If Covenant can pull that off, the small company could upend one of the basic assumptions of modern warfare: that long‑range precision weapons have to be extraordinarily expensive.

Founded in 2024 by former Israeli Air Force engineers and veterans of Rafael and Elbit, Covenant is building a relatively small cruise missile meant to combine serious range and accuracy with a radically lower price.

In a market where a U.S. Tomahawk Block IV runs around $1.5 million and a French SCALP EG is close to $900,000, Covenant’s target of $40,000–$70,000 per missile means an army could potentially buy dozens of its weapons for the cost of a handful of Western cruise missiles.

For that price, the prototype—developed with Israel’s Directorate of Defense Research and Development (MAFAT)—is designed to carry a 20–30 kilogram warhead, fly at high‑subsonic speeds, and hit targets 150–300 kilometers away.

The guidance package is compact and electro‑optical, the airframe uses lightweight composites, and much of the internal hardware is built from commercially available components rather than custom parts.

Several of Covenant’s founders previously worked on Israel’s Delilah cruise‑missile program, so the team is not starting from scratch.

They are drawing on years of experience in autonomous flight control, terminal guidance and low‑observable design, then trying to apply that knowledge to a cheaper, more scalable product.

And that could matter far beyond Israel.

Many militaries—especially in Eastern Europe, Africa and Southeast Asia—struggle to field meaningful precision‑strike capabilities because they simply cannot afford large stocks of million‑dollar missiles.

The war in Ukraine has highlighted how quickly long‑range weapons are consumed in modern conflict, with both sides firing thousands of cruise and loitering munitions since 2022.

NATO countries have felt the strain as well: the U.K. has acknowledged that its Storm Shadow inventory was heavily depleted, and states like Poland, Romania and the Baltic countries have been looking for cheaper ways to expand their arsenals.

Covenant’s answer is to treat missile production more like a modern tech company treats product manufacturing.

The basic idea is to use readily available parts wherever possible, keep the design simple, and build large numbers quickly.

Instead of relying on bespoke components and exotic materials that require specialized machining, the company leans on commercial off‑the‑shelf electronics, simplified airframes and manufacturing processes that can scale without collapsing under cost and complexity.

For smaller countries, the difference could be enormous. A military that cannot afford a large stockpile of million‑dollar missiles might be able to buy hundreds of cheaper ones.

That kind of volume would make it far more realistic to plan sustained strikes against command centers, air‑defense batteries, logistics hubs or naval assets without blowing through the defense budget in a few salvos.

If Covenant succeeds, long‑range precision weapons may no longer be something only the world’s wealthiest militaries can afford in large numbers.