PC: Forbes 

In the wide investment universe, space technology is again hogging the limelight of investors. Chatter in the venture community is centered on the huge funding seen by space tech startups this year. Space tech startups have almost reached the remarkable figure of $6 billion in funding this year, as recorded by Crunchbase. This investment surge is rapidly taking space tech startups closer to matching last year’s total funding, considering the year is currently only two-thirds done.

Adding to this boom in funding is the Costa Mesa-based Anduril Industries, a notable defense tech company that has stepped into aerospace. Most recently, Anduril raised a staggering $1.5 billion in its Series F financing round, which pushed the overall funding for this segment of space tech startups up a notch. Notably, the software provided by Anduril is used by the U.S. Space Force, further cementing its position in the aerospace sector.

Even without the big funding shot in the arm from Anduril, the space tech industry was on track for a good investment year. A succession of other strong funding rounds are adding volume to the sector, with some of the largest rounds in the U.S. including:

  • Astranis: The space startup raised $200 million in July for its Omega satellite program led by key investors such as Andreessen Horowitz and Bam Elevate.
  • Apex: Los Angeles space manufacturer raises a $95 mln Series B round led by XYZ Venture Capital and CRV to scale its satellite bus production to meet demand, which is apparently growing, much of it from the likes of the U.S. Department of Defense.
  • Hadrian: Headquartered in Hawthorne, California Hadrian raised a $117 million Series B round back in January, participants included RTX Ventures and a16z. The company builds highly automated precision component 

factories for space and defense companies.

Notably, the global landscape of space tech funding also saw considerable action in China, with five out of the top seven funding rounds going to Chinese companies. The roster includes companies like Yuanxin Satellite, Tianbing Technology, and Deep Blue Aerospace, which have all raised funding rounds valued above $100 million. If the boom in investment in China’s space tech startups is no surprise, it materializes against a backdrop of regulatory challenges and rising political tensions striking at the country’s venture market.

Moreover, the connection between defense technology and space tech startups has been becoming symbiotic. Increasing venture funding for defense tech startups, which is supposed to reach a record in 2024, is one such factor that seems to be in close correspondence with the growth of the space tech sector. When interest in the segment of defense tech rises, it automatically triggers interest in the investment of space tech startups, since the nexus between the two is pretty strong.

Investor interest in the ecosystem of space tech startups is, therefore, resurging in 2024 with sizeable funding rounds and a symbiotic relationship with the defense technology industry. Thus, with everything that happens around the space tech industry in its growth and innovation, the future surely holds something bright for those who seek to venture beyond Earth’s atmosphere.