November, 2024
I am thrilled to lead Bessemer Venture Partners’s investment in The Exploration Company's $160m series B financing alongside Alex Ferrara.
At Bessemer Venture Partners, we have a long history of investing in space-technology, including successes in companies like Rocket Lab (NASDAQ: RKLB), Skybox Imaging (Aqc. by Google) and others. These companies were/are playing in the initial market opportunity that Space offered of 1.) launching commercial satellites to Lower Earth Orbit and 2.) using these satellites to deliver business value to organizations on Earth.
Along the way, SpaceX and other heavy launcher (rocket) companies have changed the Space game. They have made the cost per launch exponentially cheaper as well as payload capacity per launch exponentially higher. This is now opening up Space exploration to commercial players that want to have manned space stations in various parts of Space (Lower Earth Orbit, Lunar Orbit & Lunar Surface) similar to the International Space Station (ISS). Over the next decade, there will be 5-10 new space stations - both private & public.
These space stations will be manned by astronauts 24 x 7 x 365 and hence will need constant logistical supply for 1.) providing food & beverage to astronauts, 2.) maintaining the space stations, 3.) conducting complex research and ultimately 4.) ferrying astronauts with greater frequency.
This is where TEC comes in. The Munich, Germany based company is building a private space transportation services business, initially for moving cargo to and from space stations, and eventually for ferrying human astronauts. To deliver this service, TEC is developing its own proprietary spacecraft (the Nyx capsule) which when launched will be the global leader in 1.) overall payload capacity and 2.) cost to transport per unit of weight to space.
We at Bessemer are thrilled to be in business with Hélène Huby, an entrepreneur who has first-hand led the development of the only other functional European spacecraft at Airbus. With all the domain expertise, she and her team have now set out to establish Europe as a contender vying to lead the Space race. All the best to Hélène and team.