Spacecraft delivery startup founded by former SpaceX rocket guru raises $150 million, led by Founders Fund
Los Angeles-based space startup Impulse, which is led by renowned rocket specialist Tom Mueller, has raised $150 million in a new fundraising round led by venture capital firm Founders Fund.
Impulse is scaling a product line of orbital transfer vehicles — colloquially known as "space tugs" — and so far is building two, the smaller Mira and the larger Helios.
While rockets get satellites and payloads into orbit, like an airplane carrying passengers to a metro area, space tugs deliver them to specific destinations, like taxis taking those passengers home from the airport.
Mueller, the first employee of SpaceX who spent nearly two decades developing engines for CEO Elon Musk, told CNBC that the funds will secure Impulse Space's future. Mueller founded Impulse three years ago after leaving SpaceX and leads the company as CEO.
"This means that we're sufficiently funded through the development of Helios and the upgraded version Mira and out past the first flights of both of these products," Mueller said.
