Startups
Stories about the new players changing the space game.
Propulsion Startups Raise Series A
A sudden rush of capital is flowing into a sector that, until recently, seemed stagnant: independent propulsion providers. Last week, Firehawk Aerospace, Adranos, and X-Bow Systems, each horizontally integrated propulsion systems developers, announced Series A rounds totaling at least $47M. Firehawk Aerospace Last week, Firehawk announced that it had received a Series A investment from…
Isotropic Is on Hiring Binge
Isotropic Systems has doubled in size over the last year, just recently signing its 130th hire, and expects to 2X again in the coming year, the British startup told Payload. The Reading, UK-based company has created—and successfully field-tested—a potentially revolutionary technology: multi-beam, multi-link, and all-orbit satellite terminals. Origin story In 2013, Isotropic CEO and founder…
Capella Raises $97M Round, Led by NightDragon
Capella Space has raised a $97M Series C, led by NightDragon and joined by existing investors DCVC and Cota Capital. Founded in 2016, the SF-based synthetic aperture radar (SAR) startup has raised $190M total to date and currently operates a constellation of seven small satellites. Those satellites are fitted with Capella’s SAR sensors, which can…
SpaceRyde Tests Gimbaling Rocket Engine
Canadian launch startup SpaceRyde has conducted a test fire of what it says is the world’s first gimbaling hybrid rocket engine. The Toronto company is building what it hopes will be Canada’s first orbital rocket. How the system works: A balloon will bring the small-lift rocket above 99% of the atmosphere, where the latter will…
ConstellR acquires hyperspectral imaging company ScanWorld
German thermal remote sensing startup ConstellR has acquired Belgian hyperspectral startup ScanWorld to offer better agricultural insights for end users. According to ConstellR, ScanWorld’s hyperspectral product development know-how will complement its own thermal infrared and data processing capabilities. Both companies were founded in 2020 with the aim of offering Earth observation (EO) data to the…
Space Perspective Unveils Interior Tourism Capsule Design
The future of space tourism may look nothing like the sterile, utilitarian white rooms imagined in the sci-fi staples we grew up with. Instead, it could be comfortable, familiar, and focused on fostering human connection and empathy, according to Space Perspective cofounder, co-CEO and CTO Taber MacCallum. Space Perspective: The space-tourism-via-balloon startup aims to capture…
World View: Ticket Sales Exceeding Expectations
World View is a Tucson, AZ-based remote-sensing and space tourism stratospheric balloon developer. The startup is on a publicity blitz, making waves recently at SXSW in Austin, appearing on The Today Show, and naming actor Adrian Grenier as “chief earth advocate.” We caught up with CEO Ryan Hartman to hear more about World View’s roadmap. …
Ursa Major Passes 200 Employees, on the Heels of First Hadley Engine Deliveries
Images: Ursa Major. Left: Hadley hotfire @ Ursa Major HQ in Berthoud, CO. Right: Hadley being prepped for shipment. Ursa Major officially signed its 200th employee this week, CEO Joe Laurienti tells Payload. The Colorado startup, which bills itself as “America’s only independent pure-play rocket propulsion company,” had just north of 125 employees in early…
Pixxel Announces $25M Series A, Led by Radical Ventures
Hyperspectral imaging startup Pixxel has raised a $25M Series A led by Radical Ventures. Also joining the round were Seraphim, Lightspeed Partners, Blume Ventures, Sparta LLC, and Relativity cofounder Jordan Noone. Payload caught up with Pixxel CEO and cofounder Awais Ahmed over email to hear more about the company’s product roadmap, development principles, and target…
Next Steps for Arcturus: A Q&A with Astranis CEO John Gedmark
Space unicorn Astranis recently announced that it had completed final tests for its first MicroGEO satellite. Payload recently caught up with Astranis CEO John Gedmark (via email) to discuss next steps, launch, satellite insurance, cellular backhaul, and everything in between. We last checked in with Gedmark in early December, when the $1.4B startup struck a…
Astranis Completes Final Testing for First Commercial Satellite
Astranis says its first commercial satellite is “ready for launch.” On Wednesday, the SF-based space unicorn said it had cleared all major tests for its first MicroGEO satellite…including the vibe test campaign (vibration/vibroacoustic tests), along with final solar array and antenna deployment tests, propulsion system tests, software tests, and electrical checkouts. In late December, the…
QuadSAT Uses Drones to Test European Earth Station Antennas
QuadSAT said this morning that it partnered with ESA’s ESOC mission control center to run a drone-based measurement campaign of 13- and 15-meter European antennas at Kiruna Earth Station. The Danish startup says that this represents the first time anyone has used a drone to measure a 15m antenna and run tracking tests on it. …
Synthetaic Raises $13M Series A, Led by Lupa Systems
AI startup Synthetaic has closed a $13M Series A, the Delafield, WI-based company announced this morning. Lupa Systems led the round, with TitleTown Tech, Betaworks, Booz Allen Hamilton, and Esri also participating. Synthetaic has raised $17.5M to date. AI’s “data problem” Labeled data is a must for most state-of-the-art models. In a world where scale…
