Varda Space Industries

Varda Space Industries is a privately held American space research company headquartered in El Segundo, California. Founded in 2020, the company aims to be the first to build a space station with industrial use, where it will take advantage of low gravity to manufacture things better than on Earth. Investors in the company include venture capitalists such as Khosla Ventures and Peter Thiel's Founders Fund.[1]

Varda Space Industries
TypePrivate
IndustrySpace industry
Founded2020
FounderWill Bruey,
Delian Asparouhov,
and Daniel Marshall
Headquarters
El Segundo, California
,
United States
Key people
Delian Asparouhov, president
Will Bruey (CEO)
Websitevarda.com

History

Varda Space was founded in November 2020 by Will Bruey, Delian Asparouhov, and Daniel Marshall. Will Bruey is a former employee of SpaceX, and Asparouhov and Marshall are associated with Founders Fund of Peter Thiel. Varda Space began research into building an industrial space station in space. The microgravity environment and absence of dust particles allows for the manufacturability of fine technical products such as computer chips with higher precision and quality than on Earth's surface. This regime also allows for the manufacture of completely new materials and products there, including fiber optics and pharmaceuticals. In July 2021, Varda Space received US$42 million in a funding round from various venture capitalists, after receiving US$9 million in an initial funding round in December 2020.[2]

In August 2021, Varda Space announced that it had signed a contract with Rocket Lab to acquire three Photon satellite bus to carry out missions to build the space station. The first delivery is expected in Q1 2023.[3][4]

In October 2021 Varda Space selected SpaceX for launch of first space manufacturing satellite. Varda Space will launch its first spacecraft on a Falcon 9 rocket in early 2023 to demonstrate the ability to produce a wide range of materials in microgravity.[5]

References
  1. Sheetz, Michael (29 July 2021). "Space start-up Varda, founded by SpaceX and Founders Fund veterans, aims to build factories in orbit". CNBC. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  2. "Varda Space Industries closes $42M Series A for off-planet manufacturing". TechCrunch. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  3. "Space manufacturing startup Varda inks deal with Rocket Lab for three spacecraft". TechCrunch. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  4. "Varda Space selects SpaceX for launch of first space manufacturing satellite". 11 October 2021.
  5. "Varda Space selects SpaceX for launch of first space manufacturing satellite". 11 October 2021.
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