Ryan Duffy
FCC Prepares Latest Broadband Subsidies
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is prepared to award $1.2B+ in new broadband payouts through its Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF). The RDOF is intended to reduce the US’s digital divide by subsidizing broadband deployment in rural and underserved areas. The two-phase auction will pay out up to $20.4B to internet service providers over the course of…
Spire (NYSE:SPIR) Releases Preliminary Q4 Results and 2022 Guidance
On Monday, Spire Global (NYSE:SPIR) released preliminary Q4 and full-year 2021 financial results. The “space-to-cloud analytics” provider expects to post Q4 revenues of $15.3M, a 111% year over year increase, and full-year revenue of $43.7M, a 53% YoY jump. Annual recurring revenue (ARR) is expected to be ~$70.8M, a 96% YoY increase. And ARR customer count climbed…
Q4 Earnings Recap
One-month performance (before market open, Jan. 31). Chart: Promus Ventures Last week, the big names in US defense and aerospace contracting reported earnings. Ongoing supply chain and labor were a persistent headwind across the sector, and more broadly, results were a mixed bag. Let’s run through the space highlights. On Tuesday, Raytheon (NYSE:RTX) and Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT)…
A Q&A with Radian CEO Richard Humphrey
Radian Aerospace recently emerged from stealth to unveil what it’s been developing for the last six years: a fully reusable, single-stage-to-orbit, horizontal-takeoff-and-landing spaceplane. It’s the stuff of science fiction—and often hailed as the holy grail of human spaceflight. Developing that holy grail is no overnight process. When ditching its stealth cloak, Radian also announced a…
D-Orbit to go Public at $1.28B Valuation
Image: D-Orbit. See investor deck here. On the heels of Satellogic ($SATL) completing its reverse merger just this week, another space player is preparing to go public via SPAC. This morning, D-Orbit announced its intentions to merge with Breeze Holdings Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:BREZ). D-Orbit offers “last-mile,” in-space transport services via its ION Satellite Carrier. D-Orbit has used ION…
An Interview with Swiss Cyber Startup CYSEC on Space Expansion
Last week, Switzerland-based CYSEC announced it had extended its seed round by 4M Swiss francs ($4.3M) to 7M Swiss francs (~$7.5M). Founded in 2018, the company creates “confidential computing” products designed to harden highly sensitive data used in clouds, data centers, and at the “edge.” The fintech-focused cyber startup plans to use new funds to…
A Deal in Aerojeopardy
Antitrust cops have stepped in to block Lockheed Martin’s (NYSE:LMT) proposed $4.4B takeover of Aerojet Rocketdyne (NYSE:AJRD), the US’s last-standing large independent missile- and rocket-motor maker. The FTC sued Tuesday to block the deal, which was announced in December 2020. Aerojet shares dropped nearly 19%, while Lockheed finished the day up 3.7%. Strategically speaking, the acquisition would give…
Scout Unveils Autonomy Software for Spacecraft and Satellites
This morning, SCOUT Inc. announced an autonomy suite for spacecraft operators to better understand what’s going on way above our heads. Alexandria, VA-based Scout’s tech stack for satellites and spacecraft spans data fusion software, proximity operation algorithms, pose estimation, docking assistance, star-tracking, and attitude determination. Put all of the above together and you get Scout…
Isar Wins €10M European Launch Prize
Isar Aerospace has won 10 million euros (~$11.3M) in prize money from the European Commission’s “Low-Cost Space Launch” competition. The prize specifically recognizes Spectrum, Isar’s two-stage orbital launch vehicle for small and medium satellites. Founded in 2018, Isar is based in Ottobrunn and Munich, Germany. Spain’s PLD Space and Rocket Factory Augsburg, another aspiring German launcher, were…
USAFRL Awards SpaceX $102M Rocket Cargo Contract
Earlier this month, the US Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) awarded SpaceX a $102M, five-year contract for its rocket cargo transportation program. The contract, first reported by Aviation Week, is a part of AFRL’s rocket cargo project, which seeks to tap into advertised commercial launch capabilities as a leased service. No Rocket Cargo funding is going toward…
Radian Raises $27.5M Seed; Emerges from Stealth
Tired: rockets Wired: fully reusable single-stage-to orbit, horizontal-takeoff-and-landing spaceplane That, in a not-so-concise nutshell, is the driving force behind Renton, WA-based Radian Aerospace. After six years, the startup finally emerged from stealth Wednesday to announce its spaceplane ambitions and a $27.5M seed round. One part rocket science and another part going where no company has gone before, Radian…
NATO Publishes Space Policy
Space is “increasingly contested, congested, and competitive,” NATO writes in its newly released overarching space policy (emphasis ours). Those three C’s in space require allies to be ready to “operate in a disrupted, denied, and degraded environment.” Monday represents NATO’s first public articulation of its space policy. NATO first declared space an operational domain and created a classified policy in late…
Space Tech Investing: A 2021 Snapshot
PitchBook and NVCA have released their Q4 ’21 Venture Monitor. If there’s one thing that’s evident, it’s that VCs had plenty to be happy about last year: Deal value for US startups nearly doubled year-over-year to $330B. Public listings, SPACs, and M&A activity drove over $680B in exit value (nearly 3x the previous record). VC fundraising…
