PiggyGPT

Private companiesCovered

Impulse Space

Redondo Beach, CA · Founded 2021

Impulse Space builds the Mira maneuvering spacecraft and the Helios kick stage, which carry satellites between orbits after launch for commercial operators and the U.S. Space Force, under contract for the Victus Surgo and Victus Salo missions and on the NSSL Phase 3 Lane 1 launch program.

Profile

What it builds and who buys it

  • ·Impulse Space was founded in 2021 by Tom Mueller and designs, builds and tests the majority of its vehicles in-house, for defense, commercial and scientific customers.Impulse Space (company page)
  • ·Mira, the first vehicle, launched on SpaceX’s Transporter-9 on November 11, 2023, about 15 months from clean-sheet design. It deployed a customer CubeSat and made a 150 kilometre orbit raise in a 75-second burn, which the company believes is the largest by a nitrous-based system. Worsening communications ended the active mission in July 2024.Impulse Space (mission page), Nov 11, 2023
  • ·General John W. Raymond, the first Chief of Space Operations of the U.S. Space Force, joined the board in February 2024, after SpaceWERX picked Impulse as the only company to win two of 19 Tactically Responsive Space Challenge SBIR awards.Impulse Space (company release), Feb 21, 2024
  • ·SpaceWERX selected Helios in August 2024 for a $60 million STRATFI award combining government, matching SBIR and private funds, toward stage testing, qualification and a first demonstration flight carrying a Department of Defense payload.Impulse Space (company release), Aug 27, 2024
  • ·Helios burns liquid oxygen and liquid methane to move more than 5 tons of payload from low Earth orbit to GEO in less than 24 hours. Mira burns nitrous oxide and ethane for up to 900 metres a second of delta-v with a 100 kilogram payload. In October 2024 the company counted more than 140 employees and a 60,000 square foot Redondo Beach headquarters, with engine testing at Mojave.Impulse Space (company release), Oct 1, 2024
  • ·Space Systems Command’s Space Safari office and the Defense Innovation Unit awarded a $34.5 million SBIR Phase III contract in October 2024 for Victus Surgo, a Mira carried to geosynchronous transfer orbit by Helios, and Victus Salo, a Mira in low Earth orbit; $15 million of it matches the STRATFI award, and both were then planned for 2026.Impulse Space (company release), Oct 3, 2024
  • ·SES signed a multi-launch agreement in May 2025 for Helios to take a 4-ton-class satellite from a medium-lift launch directly to GEO within eight hours, the first commercial contract for a dedicated Helios mission, planned for 2027.Impulse Space (company release), May 22, 2025
  • ·At the Series C in June 2025 the company reported over 30 signed commercial and government contracts totalling nearly $200 million in value, and two customer missions flown on Mira.Impulse Space (company release), Jun 3, 2025
  • ·Astranis contracted in September 2025 for a 2027 Falcon 9 launch on which Helios delivers its MicroGEO satellites from low Earth orbit to GEO in less than 24 hours, with Astranis as the primary payload.Impulse Space (company release), Sep 15, 2025
  • ·LEO Express 2 launched on SpaceX’s Transporter-12 on January 14, 2025 with CubeSats and an HEO imaging payload. In December 2025 its Mira, controlled by Starfish Space’s payloads, autonomously approached the LEO Express 1 Mira to within about 1,250 metres.Impulse Space (mission page), Jan 15, 2025
  • ·LEO Express 3, launched on November 29, 2025, flew the upgraded Mira with 25 percent more delta-v than prior versions, gimbaled solar arrays, reaction wheels and Helios avionics under test.Impulse Space (mission page), Nov 4, 2025
  • ·At the Series D in June 2026 the company reported three missions flown and hundreds of millions of dollars in customer contracts, Helios’s first flight set for 2027, headcount more than doubled in a year, over 200 open roles, and sites in Redondo Beach, Boulder, Washington and Mojave.Impulse Space (company release), Jun 3, 2026
  • ·The NSSL Phase 3 Lane 1 award of July 2026 is a firm fixed-price indefinite-delivery contract for Helios paired with a medium-lift launcher. After a capabilities assessment Impulse joins the pool of vendors eligible to bid for national security launches, with a $5 million task order for the on-ramp.Impulse Space (company release), Jul 8, 2026
  • ·A $28 million SBIR Phase III extension of August 2026 has Impulse deliver two more Mira spacecraft for Victus Salo 2 and 3, hosting government payloads in low Earth orbit; Victus Salo 1 is slated for 2027.Impulse Space (company release), Aug 13, 2026
  • ·In September 2026 Reuters reported more than 600 employees and over 180 open roles, with the Caravan 2 and Caravan 3 Helios rideshare missions planned for 2028 sold out and further dedicated flights booked.Reuters (via KFGO), Sep 16, 2026
  • ·A $28 million Space Force contract of September 2026, funded in part by a $19.75 million APFIT award sponsored by U.S. Space Command, puts a Mira carrying an MIT Lincoln Laboratory optical payload into low Earth orbit to watch objects in GEO, launching no earlier than 2029.Impulse Space (company release), Sep 23, 2026
  • ·LEO Express 4, a Mira flight with no customer payloads, was ready for SpaceX’s Bandwagon-5 rideshare on October 8, 2026, about 10 months from inception, with multiple Mira vehicles in production at Redondo Beach.Impulse Space (mission page), Sep 10, 2026

Founders and leadership

  • Tom MuellerFounder and chief executive

    A founding member of SpaceX and its CTO of propulsion, who led propulsion development for Falcon 1, Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy and the Dragon spacecraft. He founded Impulse in 2021.Impulse Space (company page)

  • Eric RomoPresident and chief operating officer

    One of SpaceX’s first propulsion engineering hires, then a founder of companies in solar energy and virtual reality and four years a director at Facebook Reality Labs. A master’s degree in mechanical engineering and an MBA from Stanford.SmallSat Symposium (speaker page)

  • Adam TownsendChief financial officer

    The company’s first chief financial officer, appointed in September 2026. Previously chief financial officer and head of HR operations at VIZIO through its IPO and its sale to Walmart, with senior finance roles at CBS, Showtime Networks and E*TRADE Financial.Impulse Space (company release), Sep 16, 2026

  • John W. RaymondDirector

    A retired general and the first Chief of Space Operations of the U.S. Space Force, from 2019 to 2022, who led its establishment. Joined the board in February 2024 to advise on government work.Impulse Space (company release), Feb 21, 2024

Prospects, after the Series D extension

Prepared by PiggyGPT, as of Oct 11, 2026

  • ·The capital path is private and steep: $30 million of seed in 2022, then $45 million, $150 million, $300 million and $808 million across four lettered rounds, with Bloomberg and Reuters reporting $4.26 billion in June 2026 and $5.4 billion three months later. Neither the company nor the named press on file records a statement about an IPO.
  • ·No revenue figure is on file. Every Form D declines to disclose a revenue range, and Reuters describes the business as working to turn a backlog of contracts into revenue. The stated book is nearly $200 million across more than 30 contracts in June 2025 and hundreds of millions of dollars in June 2026.SEC (Form D), Jun 2, 2026
  • ·Helios carries most of the forward record: the SES and Astranis missions, the sold-out Caravan 2 and 3 flights, the STRATFI demonstration and the NSSL on-ramp all depend on a vehicle that has not flown. Its first flight moved from 2026 at the Series B to 2027 at the Series D, and Victus Salo 1, planned for 2026 at its award, is now slated for 2027.
  • ·Mira has the flight record: three missions flown, a fourth ready for launch and an autonomous rendezvous with Starfish Space. The defense work on file rests on it: Victus Surgo, three Victus Salo missions and the domain awareness mission sponsored by U.S. Space Command.
  • ·The two public venue figures on file sit far apart: Clarity’s modelled $217.73 and Nasdaq Private Market’s $99.23 dated September 25, 2026. Neither venue explains the gap, and neither is a valuation.
  • ·For the acquisition read, the ties are on file and nothing more: RTX Ventures and Airbus Ventures have held stakes since the Series A, and Anduril is a partner on Mira, a GEO demonstration and a Golden Dome team. None has been reported as talks, and the company raised $808 million in 2026. The posture is watch.

A summary of what the figures on this page add up to, prepared by PiggyGPT from the record on file and its cited sources. Not the Street's view, and not advice.

Funding

Last valuation

$5.4B

Post-money, Series D extension, reportedReuters (via KFGO), Sep 16, 2026

Last round or tender

$308Mraised

Series D extensionImpulse Space (company release), Sep 16, 2026

A $308 million extension bringing the Series D to $808 million, with 137 Ventures, BANNER VC, DFJ Growth, Linse Capital, Lux Capital and Valor Equity Partners among the existing investors taking part. The company’s About page lists it as $380 million; its release and Reuters both state $308 million, recorded here. The company stated no valuation; Reuters reported $5.4 billion, citing a source close to the company, in a story that carries a correction to its valuation. No Form D for the extension is on EDGAR under the issuer’s name.

Latest revenue figure

—

Valuation to revenue

—

Post-money valuation by round

$0$1B$2B$3B$4B$5B$6BSep '26$5.4B Series D extension
DateRoundRaisedPost-money
Sep 16, 2026Series D extensionA $308 million extension bringing the Series D to $808 million, with 137 Ventures, BANNER VC, DFJ Growth, Linse Capital, Lux Capital and Valor Equity Partners among the existing investors taking part. The company’s About page lists it as $380 million; its release and Reuters both state $308 million, recorded here. The company stated no valuation; Reuters reported $5.4 billion, citing a source close to the company, in a story that carries a correction to its valuation. No Form D for the extension is on EDGAR under the issuer’s name.$308M$5.40Breported
Jun 2, 2026Series DCo-led by 137 Ventures and BANNER VC with Founders Fund, Lux Capital and Linse Capital; the company put total capital raised at over $1 billion. Reuters and Bloomberg reported it on June 2, 2026; the company’s page dates its release June 3. The Form D signed June 2, 2026 records $499.8 million of a $500 million equity offering sold to 63 investors from April 8, 2026. The company stated no valuation; Bloomberg reported $4.26 billion including the investment, citing a person familiar with the matter.$500M$4.26Breported
Jun 3, 2025Series CLed by Linse Capital with DFJ Growth new and Valor Equity Partners, Founders Fund, Lux Capital, RTX Ventures, DCVC, Airbus Ventures, Spring Tide, First Principles Group, Balerion Space Ventures, Tamarack Global and Trousdale Ventures returning. The company put total capital raised at $525 million. The Form D signed June 11, 2025 records $294.5 million of a $299.8 million equity offering sold to 47 investors from May 9, 2025. No valuation was stated by the company or by named press on file.$300M—
Oct 1, 2024Series BLed by Founders Fund with Lux Capital and Spring Tide returning and DCVC new; Airbus Ventures, Alumni Ventures, Balerion Space Ventures, RTX Ventures, Tamarack Global, 137 Ventures, Elysium, First Principles Group, Island Green, Overmatch and Trousdale Ventures also took part. The company put funding to date at $225 million. No Form D for the round is on EDGAR under the issuer’s name. No valuation was stated.$150M—
Jul 24, 2023Series ALed by RTX Ventures with Founders Fund, Lux Capital, Airbus Ventures and Space Capital. The Form D signed August 3, 2023 records $38.7 million of a $45 million equity offering sold to 31 investors from July 21, 2023; the figure here is the round as announced. No valuation was stated.$45M—
Jun 17, 2022Seed (Lux Capital)$10 million from Lux Capital, which the company said rounded its recent funding out to $30 million. The release carries a June 16, 2022 dateline. No Form D for it is on EDGAR under the issuer’s name. No valuation was stated.$10M—
Mar 29, 2022SeedLed by Founders Fund, announced as Impulse Space Propulsion. The Form D records $20 million of equity sold to 38 investors from March 24, 2022, the whole offering. No valuation was stated.$20M—

Primary capital across the rounds on file: $1.33B

Revenue

No citable revenue figure on file.

Secondary venues

  • Clarity (formerly Hiive)public page seen Oct 11, 2026

    Clarity Price $217.73, as of Oct 11, 2026

    Clarity calls the figure a model-derived indicative estimate calculated daily; the page dates it no further than a "last updated" line reading August 28, 2026. Its round table lists the June 2026 Series D at $80.95 a share. The figure differs from Nasdaq Private Market’s dated $99.23 of September 25, 2026; neither page explains the gap.

  • Nasdaq Private Marketpublic page seen Oct 11, 2026

    NPM Price $99.23, as of Sep 25, 2026

    The dated figure in the page text; the page title showed $98.88 undated. The figure differs from Clarity’s $217.73 seen the same day. The page gives a founding year of 2000 and a San Francisco headquarters, neither of which matches the company’s own pages.

  • Caplightpublic page seen Oct 11, 2026

    No price on the public page.

    The page shows no MarketPrice and says no recent secondary market data is available; the valuation it estimates from round data is an aggregator’s figure and is not recorded.

  • Augmentpublic page seen Oct 11, 2026

    No price on the public page.

    The company page shows no price, and Impulse Space is not on Augment’s Power 20 page.

A venue is listed when its public page named the company on the date shown. A price is the figure that page showed, under the venue’s own name for it and dated as the venue dated it; it is a level the venue publishes, not a trade. Nothing is recorded from behind a login.

Reads

Acquisition: Watch

A cited tie to a plausible buyer: a strategic partner, an investor stake, a tender offer, a stated appetite. Nothing reported.

Prepared by PiggyGPT, as of Oct 11, 2026

Signals

  • Jul 24, 2023RTX Ventures, the venture arm of RTX, led Impulse Space’s $45 million Series A, with Founders Fund, Lux Capital, Airbus Ventures and Space Capital taking part.Impulse Space (company release), Jul 24, 2023
  • Oct 1, 2024Impulse Space closed a $150 million Series B led by Founders Fund, with RTX Ventures and Airbus Ventures among the participants; no valuation was stated.Impulse Space (company release), Oct 1, 2024
  • Oct 11, 2024Anduril announced a strategic partnership under which Impulse supplies Mira spacecraft, Anduril integrates its own and partners’ payloads for classified missions, and Mira is onboarded into Anduril’s Lattice software.Impulse Space (company release), Oct 11, 2024
  • Jun 3, 2025Impulse Space closed a $300 million Series C led by Linse Capital, with RTX Ventures and Airbus Ventures returning; no valuation was stated.Impulse Space (company release), Jun 3, 2025
  • Sep 16, 2025Anduril and Impulse Space expanded the partnership to an internally funded rendezvous and proximity mission in geosynchronous orbit, targeted for 2026, with Anduril payloads on a Mira carried to GEO by Helios.Impulse Space (company release), Sep 16, 2025
  • May 5, 2026Via Satellite reported that Anduril named Impulse Space, Inversion Space, K2 Space, Sandia National Labs and Voyager Technologies as collaborators on its Golden Dome space-based interceptor award, without saying what each would supply.Via Satellite, May 5, 2026
  • Jun 2, 2026Impulse Space announced a $500 million Series D co-led by 137 Ventures and BANNER VC; Bloomberg reported a $4.26 billion valuation including the investment.Bloomberg (via Bloomberg Law), Jun 2, 2026
  • Jul 8, 2026Space Systems Command awarded Impulse an NSSL Phase 3 Lane 1 indefinite-delivery contract for Helios, the first upper-stage provider to be a prime in the program, with a $5 million initial task order.Impulse Space (company release), Jul 8, 2026
  • Sep 16, 2026Impulse Space announced a $308 million Series D extension, taking the round to $808 million, and named its first chief financial officer; Reuters reported a $5.4 billion valuation.Reuters (via KFGO), Sep 16, 2026

Named counterparties

  • RTXRTX Ventures led the Series A and returned in the Series B and Series C. No interest in a deal has been reported.Impulse Space (company release), Jun 3, 2025
  • AndurilA strategic partner since October 2024: Mira flies Anduril payloads under Lattice, the two run a self-funded GEO rendezvous mission, and Anduril named Impulse to its Golden Dome interceptor team. No interest in a deal has been reported.Impulse Space (company release), Oct 11, 2024
  • AirbusAirbus Ventures invested in the Series A and returned in the Series B and Series C. No interest in a deal has been reported.Impulse Space (company release), Jun 3, 2025

Counterparties are named for a cited reason: a partnership, an investment, or a stated appetite. Naming is not a forecast.

A summary of what the figures on this page add up to, prepared by PiggyGPT from the record on file and its cited sources. Not the Street's view, and not advice.

Sources

Researched Oct 11, 2026