spacetoday.net: Varda raises $90 million for space manufacturing

Posted: Sat, Apr 13, 2024, 11:34 AM ET (1534 GMT)
Space manufacturing startup Varda Space Industries has raised $90 million. The company announced its Series B round Friday led by venture firm Caffeinated Capital with participation by several other investors. The funding comes a month and a half after Varda completed its first mission, landing a capsule in the Utah desert containing samples of an HIV drug produced in microgravity. The company plans to use the funding to scale up its operations to produce pharmaceuticals that are not possible or cost-effective to make on the ground, with a goal of flying monthly missions. The company also has interest from government customers for data from the capsule during reentry to support hypersonics research.