Space technology firm Aldoria closes EUR 10 million Series A funding

This is the largest equity funding round for an SSA company in Europe

French space technology start-up Aldoria, that was formerly known as Share My Space, a leading pioneer in the field of Space Situational Awareness (SSA), has announced the closure of its Series A funding round.

In a press statement, Aldoria says that it secured EUR 10 million in equity investments from a strong syndicate, bringing the total amount of investment in the company to EUR 22 million to date. The investor consortium includes Starquest Capital, the European Innovation Council Fund, the French State, through its “Deeptech 2030” fund managed by Bpifrance, Expansion Ventures, Space Founders France, and Wind Capital. 

The statement adds that to support this new stage of development, the company is strengthening its brand. Effective today, Share My Space becomes Aldoria, which is a former name of the Pleiades Nebula. The company says that the funding round was led by Starquest, a dedicated advocate for green financing through Article 9 of the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation. Article 9 mandates that investments must have sustainable objectives. Aldoria’s mission to protect critical space assets and resources aligns perfectly with this policy, it says. Starquest’s dedication to green financing reflects a global shift towards sustainable investments, and Aldoria is proud to see space recognised as an environmental priority, it adds.

Arnaud Delattre

The space environment, which is essential for numerous critical functions on Earth, including communication, navigation, and climate change monitoring, requires safeguarding from the detrimental effects of space debris and other threats. 

“We at Starquest are delighted to lead this financing round and to bring our support to an outstanding and disruptive team. They are paving the way to many critical applications for efficient climate monitoring, a critical issue we are tackling with our Starquest Protect fund. We feel extremely confident about the growth potential of Aldoria, an icon of the French deeptech acting for a global future,” says Arnaud Delattre, President, Starquest Capital.

Svetoslava Georgieva

“Recognising the increasing importance of European leadership in the global space arena, Aldoria’s vision aligns with our commitment to fortifying the region’s space safety efforts. With proprietary sensors and a keen understanding of market dynamics, Aldoria is poised for sustained success as a market leader in the evolving landscape of Space Situational Awareness,” says Svetoslava Georgieva, Chair of the EIC Fund Board.

The statement adds that this Series A round is a significant milestone for Aldoria, underlining the company’s achievements. These include establishing a global presence in over 17 countries through strategic contracts and partnerships with prominent space agencies like CNES and ESA, commercial satellite operators such as Airbus Defence & Space, and other key stakeholders including Astroscale and Isar Aerospace. 

Romain Lucken

The spatial company says that with aerospace fundraising at its lowest level in over a decade, its value proposition has shown to be attractive in a demanding investor market. The successful closing of this oversubscribed EUR 10 million equity round serves as a testament to the confidence placed by the investors. This is also the largest equity funding round for an SSA company in Europe. 

“We have been striving for half a decade to make Earth orbits recognised as part of our environment. More and more people in the space community and beyond have become aware of the space debris issue. We are very happy that orbital environment protection is now supported by green finance, and we are therefore particularly proud of our partnership with Starquest Capital through their Protect Article 9 fund, with the continued support of our existing shareholder Expansion Ventures, as well as several public investors,’’ says Romain Lucken, CEO, Aldoria.

Protecting a crowded space

The statement adds that the number of active satellites in low Earth orbit is expected to grow from nearly 9,000 today to 40,000 in 2030. The ramifications of this increase are already noticeable. Aldoria’s orbital information system has generated 230,000 independent measurements on 5,000 objects and anticipated 30 million close approaches between resident space objects in 2023. Amid the growing insecurity caused by the lack of space traffic rules, Aldoria is taking control back by advising operators on real-time threats. 

The company says that it stands at the forefront of global innovation with its cutting-edge optical system, renowned for its wide field of view capable of detecting large amounts of small objects including stealth satellites. The precision and clarity offered by its patented optical systems provide a competitive edge in capturing detailed information about the space environment. With over 20 customers and a unique network of six optical surveillance stations on four continents, Aldoria is now ready for its next development stage, it says. 

Besides expanding the network to 12 stations by 2025, one of the strategic objectives is to develop and refine a multi-sensor approach to address more customer use cases through data fusion. Overall, Aldoria is set to offer a competitive European SSA solution to the global market. The Series A funding will facilitate the expansion of its presence, investments in local talents, and contributions to the growth of the European space ecosystem, in line with upcoming EU space law, it adds.