Shift5
Shift5 sells operational intelligence software for military and transportation systems, helping detect threats and anticipate failures. The Arlington-based company has raised $181M and employs 145 people.
The growth story
Shift5 grew from 53 to 145 employees between 2021 and 2026, raising $181M along the way, most recently a Series C in September 2025.
About
Shift5 provides analytics software that monitors operational technology in defense and transportation systems. Its platform helps operations, maintenance and cybersecurity teams identify threats and predict equipment failures.
The company was founded in 2019 by former military officers and has grown rapidly, securing $181M in funding through a Series C round. Its customer base includes military organizations and major transportation companies.
Founders and leadership
Shift5 is led by founders with backgrounds in U.S. Army Cyber Command. Engineering is the largest function, accounting for 35 of the company's 145 employees. The leadership team has deep military and cybersecurity expertise.
The Shift5 org chart
Toby Magsig (Chief Executive Officer) leads 41 mapped leaders with 7 direct reports. Click +N to expand a team; names link to the person’s public profile.
- Chief Legal Officer - - Responsible for legal, contracts, compliance, HR and industrial securityExecutive
Departments, and which ones grew
Headcount by function: Engineering 55 (+8% YoY), Information Technology 11 (0% YoY), Business Development 9 (+80% YoY), Entrepreneurship 8 (-20% YoY), Product Management 6 (-14% YoY), Sales 6 (+20% YoY).
Talent flow
Shift5 recruits heavily from the U.S. military, with alumni from the Air Force, Navy and Army making up a significant portion of its workforce. Many employees also come from cybersecurity firms like Booz Allen Hamilton, Tanium and Palantir. The company's talent often moves to defense and security startups like NinjaOne and Seekr.
Most common previous employers of Shift5 staff: United States Air Force (7), US Navy (7), Booz Allen Hamilton (7), US Army (6), Tanium (6), Palantir Technologies (4). Former Shift5 employees most often moved to NinjaOne (8), Seekr (4), Aventra Defense (3), Scale AI (3), ServiceNow (2), Halcyon (2).
Alumni worth knowing
The Shift5 mafia
Shift5 alumni have founded several defense and security startups, including Augur Security, Aventra Defense and Legion X. These companies collectively employ over 50 people, continuing Shift5's focus on military and cybersecurity applications.
9Joe Lea, was President until 2023Michael Weigand, was Founder, CEO, CGO until 2024Brian McCord, was Vice President of Labs until 2023Brian Bush, was Principal Machine Learning Engineer until 2023Doug Walsh, was Intern until 2021Ellie Daw, was Senior Product Manager until 2023
Andy Oare, was Head of Federal Marketing & Public Affairs until 2023
Michaela Hares, was Senior Field and Events Marketing Manager until 2024
Alexander Gates, was Chief Research Officer until 2023Hiring now
Web traffic
Traffic mix: 46% direct, 30% search, 9% social, 1% paid.
What this company is made of
Most common skills at Shift5: Leadership (46), Microsoft Office (42), Python (Programming Language) (40), Project Management (38), Microsoft Excel (34), Management (31), Data Analysis (31), C (Programming Language) (29).
Where the team actually sits
Shift5 people are concentrated in Virginia, United States (13), Washington DC-Baltimore Area (13), District of Columbia, United States (10), Maryland, United States (8).
Search footprint
Shift5 attracts about 473 organic search visits a month, traffic worth roughly $3K a month if bought through ads. It gained 58 ranking keywords and lost 58 in the last period.
What employees say
- Compensation
- 4.40 / 5
- Career opportunities
- 4.10 / 5
- Senior management
- 3.90 / 5
- Work-life balance
- 3.80 / 5
Frequently asked
Shift5 has 145 employees as of September 2026.
Shift5 has raised $181M in total, most recently a Series C round in September 2025.
Shift5 was founded in 2019 by Josh Lospinoso.
Toby Magsig (Chief Executive Officer) sits at the top of Shift5's reporting structure, with 7 direct reports.
The most common previous employers of current Shift5 staff are United States Air Force (7 people), US Navy (7 people), Booz Allen Hamilton (7 people).
Former Shift5 employees most often move to NinjaOne (8), Seekr (4), Aventra Defense (3).
At least 9 companies have a founder who previously worked at Shift5, including Augur Security, Aventra Defense, Legion X.
Shift5 attracts about 473 organic search visits a month, worth roughly $3K a month in equivalent ad spend.
The most common skills among Shift5 staff are Leadership, Microsoft Office, Python (Programming Language), Project Management, Microsoft Excel.
Shift5 staff are concentrated in Virginia, United States (13), Washington DC-Baltimore Area (13), District of Columbia, United States (10).
Shift5 has about 55 people in Engineering, up 8% over the past year, as of September 2026.
Shift5 has about 11 people in Information Technology, up 0% over the past year, as of September 2026.
Computed from 102 current and 175 former Shift5 profiles, as of September 2026. Source: Crustdata.
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