To infinity and beyond: 10 European spacetech startups shaping life on earth

For years, outer space exploration captured our curiosity and imagination, but it was mostly far away to most of us and one could only dream of being an astronaut or a scientist… Good news: it’s no longer a dream, space technologies are creating an explosion of business opportunities here on Earth. Spacetech is the next frontier for start-ups around the world as the private sector steps into a field once dominated by governments.

James Webb Telescope was the most recent landmark renewed interest in the cosmos. But for the last few months we witnessed that “space race” is relaunched: private companies Virgin Galactic, Space X and Blue Origin have sprinted to transport the first space tourists. On the other hand, the frenzy around the launching of new satellites has intensified, with more than 2.100 being launched in the last year alone! Companies such as SpaceX/Starlink, OneWeb, Amazon and China's StarNet propose to increase this number by tens of thousands in the coming years. But after all, what can all these satellites do for us, down here on Earth?

Since the late 1950s and in particular since the launch of the Echo 1 satellite, we have had access to faster communications. Some of us will still remember the live broadcast on TV of the landing of man on the moon in 1969, only possible through the Intelsat satellite, reaching 600 million people simultaneously!

Nowadays, we can thank the satellites to inform us about the weather, the fields we cultivate, the roads we travel or even the quality of the water, and experts say we’ve only scratched the surface of what’s possible!

The emerging technologies and the ambition of European entrepreneurs and innovators is creating the dawn of a new era.

Otherwise known as “new space”, this sector has attracted talented entrepreneurs and some interesting developments: new funding, dedicated VC funds and IPO’s by Lilium and Arqit, and acquisitions such StormGeo, Deveryware and ?Hummingbird Techonologies.

In Europe, spacetech is growing at a skyrocketing pace. We decided to take a look at some of the continent’s most exciting companies that we think will be pivotal in shaping the future of the life on earth with space technology in the years to come:

THE EXPLORATION COMPANY (https://www.exploration.space/ )

Headquartered in Munich, the company is a French-German endeavour with Hélène Huby as CEO and cofounder, and its mission is to make space exploration more affordable and open. The team, made of former and experienced Airbus and ArianeGroup employees, is developing a group of reusable space capsules that would be a pragmatic and affordable alternative to the International Space Station. Nyx is a sustainable and reusable capsule that can fly cargo into space, resupply space stations and potentially transport humans. These capsules will be part of the logistics infrastructure to go to the moon and back. After the flights of two capsule demonstrators planned in 2023 and 2024, the Nyx capsule maiden flight is expected to take place in 2026. It aims to provide in-space experiments for 10% of the price of the International Space Station, and plans to fly to the Moon for a fraction of the current costs.

This February, the company raised a €40 million round, the biggest space tech Series A in Europe, co-lead by EQT Group and Red River West.

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CLEAR SPACE (https://clearspace.today/ )

ClearSpace is a Swiss company that aims is to remove space debris. Although space seems immense, the available orbits around earth are limited and besides the 2.100 active satellites orbiting Earth at the moment, there are also 3.000 non-active and just floating “dead”. What's more, there are around 34,000 pieces of space junk bigger than 10 centimetres in size and millions of smaller pieces that could nonetheless prove disastrous if they hit something else.

The company is focusing on the removal of current debris so they are part of ClearSpace-1, a pioneer mission scheduled to launch in 2026 supported and mandated by ESA. In January 2023 ClearSpace closed a 26,7 Million € series A round from a global team of venture capital investors led by OTB Ventures along with Swisscom Ventures. Co-founders Luc Piguet and Muriel Richard-Noca stated: “We began this company 4 years ago with the goal of making space operations sustainable and are delighted to be joined on our journey by our new partner investors. We look forward to accelerating our activities to meet the urgent needs of space sustainability.”

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NEURASPACE (https://www.neuraspace.com/ )

Portuguese startup Neuraspace developed and recently launched its space traffic management platform aimed at satellite operators, insurers and regulators. The company is rapidly expanded and leads several R&D projects to develop advanced AI tools that can manage complex and ever-increasing satellite manoeuvres, motivated by increasing traffic and debris.

Neuraspace’s platform is an automated solution designed to provide higher accuracy in detecting high-risk collisions and reducing human intervention by up to 75%. Their AI technology enables more accurate satellite collision risk prediction and, by applying a data fusion strategy, offers increased robustness and resilience. “…our solution will be a benchmark in artificial intelligence and machine learning technology in the aerospace market worldwide,” commented COO Chiara Manfletti. They recently raised 2.5 Million € seed round lead Armilar Venture Partners.

?SOLSTORM (https://www.solstorm.io/ )

Norwegian startup Solstorm is also tackling the complex problem of space debris by enabling hybrid propulsion system to deorbit rockets and satellites.?Its system: Magbreak, does not use external engines, propellants, or internal supply for propulsion. It converts energy from the solar wind to propel satellites, rockets, and other space transport.

When a rocket or satellite reaches the end of its useful life, Solstorm’s technology deploys and generates a magnetic field by harnessing power from the ionosphere without conventional rockets. The magnetic field induces electromagnetic drag that deorbits and disposes of the craft without leaving behind hazardous “space junk.”. The field induces electromagnetic drag that de-orbit and dispose of dead satellites after their mission is complete, thus minimizing space debris.

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SATELLITE VU (https://www.satellitevu.com/ )

The London-based startup, launched in 2016, is aiming to be “the Earth’s thermometer in space”. It uses infrared and thermal imaging technology to monitor the temperature of areas and objects on Earth, down to a single building. The technology could be used to monitor anything from the energy efficiency of buildings to whether sewage is being illegally pumped into waterways (the sewage would be at a higher temperature and therefore visible) among other use cases. The company focus on supporting decision making around the world related to: Energy industry, Natural Disaster responders, Building operators and Plastics clean-up operations.

The company raised a 20 M€ Series A round from investors including Seraphim Space Capital and Molten Ventures. It is due to launch the first of seven planned satellites in 2023.

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Misson Space (https://www.mission.space )

Space storms are a real thing… Caused by the Sun, when it experiences a giant magnetic eruption it creates a solar wind consisting of charged particles, travelling at high speeds and causing electromagnetic fields that induce extreme currents in wires, disrupting satellite operations and even causing widespread power outage.

Mission Space is a Latvian startup that provides space weather monitoring with LEO (Lower Earth Orbit) network of innovative detectors and analytics, capable of proving dedicated infos. These sensors take in-situ measurements of the near-Earth magnetic and solar wind conditions as well as highly energetic particle streams from interplanetary shocks and the Sun. The startup’s software analyses this data and offers real-time updates on the ground about space weather changes, thus, acting as a decision support tool to detect and prevent space weather radiation risks. Moreover, it models and predicts various space weather scenarios, enabling researchers to better understand space weather trends and risks.

SKYRORA (https://www.skyrora.com/ )

You can now go to space without rockets, and that’s what Skyrora builds. Out of the more than 100 companies already working in this space, Skyrora has a unique approach as their team designs, manufactures, and deploys rockets that focus and target small satellite manufacturers. With HQ in Edinburgh, they already have different facilities located across Europe in Germany, Slovakia and Ukraine.

Last October, they tested the Skylark L single-stage suborbital launch vehicle from Iceland. The first test had some problems but they’re planning another launch from Iceland around April, while preparing for a first orbital launch attempt with the Skyrora XL from the SaxaVord Spaceport, being developed on Shetland off the coast of Scotland. Skyrora XL is a three-stage rocket using 3D-printed engines designed to place payloads weighing up to 315 kg to Polar and Sun-Synchronous orbits.

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DESCARTES (https://descartesunderwriting.com/ )

Descartes is a French startup that focus on insurance and climate risks. In order to protect assets against natural catastrophes, weather and other risks they use a data-driven approach, using both machine learning and real-time monitoring from satellites. Their new approach, Parametric Insurance is unlike traditional insurance, which relies on lengthy loss adjustment procedures. Parametric insurance pays out when a predefined event (flood, cyclone, earthquake, etc.) occurs as measured by a specified parameter or index, with no on-the-ground loss adjustment required.

In 2022, Descartes has raised a 120 M€ series B round to further develop its technology platform, expand new business verticals, and continue global expansion plans. Tanguy Touffut, founder and CEO stated. “Our aim is to be the global leader in delivering truly revolutionary solutions to brokers, corporations, and public entities for these evolving exposures. With the support of our partners, we will continue to develop and deploy a new generation of insurance products that are entirely tech-driven, simpler, more transparent and quicker to pay in the event of a loss – adapted for the new risks corporations and governments increasingly face”.

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MAVUNO (https://www.mavuno.tech/ )

Technology can have a deeper social impact and Mavuno is such an example: they’re empowering African farmers. Based both in Berlin and Tanzania, by using Satellite images and machine learning they have developed technology that is easily accessible via a mobile APP, so that farmers use it to help them manage and improve their crops

Agriculture is a vital sector for the African continent and employs the majority of the population (450 million smallholder farmers). However, the sector is facing several challenges, such as a lack of access funding and technology, which limit the potential of farmers to increase their productivity and income. Agritech solutions are powerful tools that European already use and Mavuno is democratizing its access, starting with cashew producers in Tanzania.

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ENTOCYCLE (https://entocycle.com/ )

How about spacetech also changing the way we produce food? That’s what Entocycle is doing in a very unconventional but scalable way: insect farming. The company's modular and automated indoor system allows farmers to create sustainable insect protein from organic waste, anywhere in the world, 365 days a year. In so doing, Entocycle makes healthy food for farmed animals without the harmful effects on the planet.

Space technologies and assets used for Spaceflight and Earth Observation created amazing learnings from the interoperability of different IoT systems, creating a smart process that required rigorous environmental conditions. By using hyperspectral imaging cameras and other IoT technologies, Entocycle has able to create a world-leading efficient method to help convert waste organic matter into protein by means of insects. Their mission to accelerate a global shift to sustainable protein using insects, technology and innovation.

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Orignally posted in EU-startups.com:

#spacetech ClearSpace Neuraspace The Exploration Company Solstorm SatVu Mission Space Skyrora Ltd Descartes Underwriting Mavuno Technologies Entocycle ESA Commercialisation Gateway