Nearly a year ago, the startup Varda Space Industries was founded by Will Bruey and Delian Asparouhov. Currently, the company is headquartered in Torrance, California. Varda recently raised over $50 million to further its space-oriented projects.
Varda CEO and co-founder Will Bruey has made it clear that Varda’s mission is to build the first space-based manufacturing plant.
In just one investment round led by Khosla Ventures and Caffeinated Capital with the participation of Lux Capital, General Catalyst and Founders Fund, Varda was supported with $42 million.
Since its inception, the startup has raised a total of $53 million. The two Varda co-founders have built a team of 16 people and plan to grow that number to 40 in the near future.
The International Space Station and the production of space-based materials are not new to the world, and many companies have conducted product testing in orbit. However, Varda wants to take space-made products to the next level.
According to Asparouhov, Varda will demonstrate its success by working to bring value to the Earth by building things in space.
To do that, Varda will seek to tap the market for products such as semiconductors, optical cables or pharmaceuticals that would be better if they were manufactured in orbit. A three-piece spaceship is a product that Varda is working on. The company expects this spacecraft to be launched and operational after 18 months.
The three-piece spacecraft consists of a spacecraft platform, a production module, and a capsule protected by vented glass for the purpose of re-entry into the atmosphere as well as a parachute landing.
The landing site is yet to be officially made public. But there are only a handful of sites that are suitable – it needs to be in a large, unpopulated area.
The company is targeting a larger market than space tourism and wants to produce products that significantly impact life on Earth. The startup is taking a step-by-step approach, gradually expanding into larger missions and will create more fixed stations in space.
