Startup · Germany
The Exploration Company
HQ Gauting, GermanyFounded 2021501-1000 employeesUpdated
We build accessible, sustainable, and cooperative space worlds.
Funding6 rounds · ~$661M
- Equity raised
- ~$661M
- Latest
- $450MSeries C · Sep 8, 2026
| Announced | Stage | Amount | Valuation | Lead investors | Other investors | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 8, 2026 | Series C | $450M | — | Atomico, Bessemer Venture Partners, Scaleup Europe Fund (managed by EQT) | Balderton, Cherry Ventures, Plural, Red River West | Confirmed |
| Nov 17, 2024 | Series B | $160M | — | Balderton, Plural | Bayern Kapital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Cherry Ventures, EQT Ventures, NGP Capital, Omnes Capital, Promus Ventures, Red River West | Confirmed |
| Sep 29, 2023 | Convertible | Undisclosed | — | — | — | Reported |
| Feb 1, 2023 | Series A | ~$42.9M | — | EQT Ventures, Red River West | Cherry Ventures, Omnes Capital, Promus Ventures, Vsquared Ventures | Reported |
| Nov 18, 2021 | Seed | ~$6.0M | — | Promus Ventures | Cherry Ventures, Vsquared Ventures | Reported |
| Oct 5, 2021 | Pre-Seed | ~$1.7M | — | — | — | Reported |
- $450MSep 8, 2026
- Series BWith Bayern Kapital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Cherry Ventures, EQT Ventures, NGP Capital, Omnes Capital, Promus Ventures, Red River WestConfirmed$160MNov 17, 2024
- ConvertibleUndisclosedSep 29, 2023
- Series ALed by EQT Ventures, Red River West~$42.9MFeb 1, 2023
- ~$6.0MNov 18, 2021
- Pre-Seed~$1.7MOct 5, 2021
Raised counts equity rounds; debt, secondary sales and grants are totaled separately. Amounts in other currencies are converted at the announcement month's average rate. A ~ marks an estimated or converted amount.
Systems2
Newest unveiled first. Systems that belong to a government program link to the program page, where variants, costs and contracts are.
Capabilities1
| Technology | Role | Maturity | TRL | Notes | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Space, launch and counterspace | Developer | — | — | classify_sectors run 37, sonnet, taxonomy 2026-10-18b: Builds space vehicles and services, with no defense use stated in the text. | Reported |
- Developerclassify_sectors run 37, sonnet, taxonomy 2026-10-18b: Builds space vehicles and services, with no defense use stated in the text.—Reported
Maturity and TRL describe this organization's work; the field-wide maturity is on each technology's page.
People8
| Person | Role |
|---|---|
| Hélène Huby | Founder |
| Jon Reijneveld | Co-Founder & Chief Engineer |
| Nils Bernhardt | Co-Founder & Lead Software |
| Pierre VINET | Co-Founder & Cryogenic Engine Technical Authority |
| Romain Mabboux | Co-Founder & Propulsion Functional Engineer |
| Sebastien Reichstadt | Co-Founder & Propulsion System Lead |
| Artur Koop | Chief Operating Officer |
| Najwa Naimy | Chief Program Officer - Directrice Des Programmes |
Sources9
Profile1
- 1
Sixth-Domain · Supports Organization · country, Organization · kind
“{"country": "Germany", "hq_iso2": "DE", "id": "042b20b3-c4d9-4670-a3a0-cfae13a03214"}”
Systems2
- 2
The Exploration Company · Supports Organization · description, Organization · linkedin url, Organization · name, Organization · website, System
“We build accessible, sustainable, and cooperative space worlds.”
- 3
The Exploration Company · Supports System
“Meet Nyx # A reusable capsule. Docking to the ISS. Nyx takes off from any heavy launcher in the world to safely deliver cargo to and from space stations in LEO and beyond.”
Funding5
- 4
The Exploration Company · Sep 8, 2026 · Supports Funding round · amount, Organization · ownership
“today announced a $450 million Series C financing”
- 5
Aerospace Valley (company release) · Nov 20, 2024 · Supports Funding round · amount
“announces it has raised $160 million in Series B funding co-led by Balderton Capital and Plural”
- 6
FinSMEs · Feb 1, 2023 · Supports Funding round · amount
“raised €40m in Series A funding. The round was co-led by EQT Ventures and Red River West”
- 7
EU-Startups · Nov 18, 2021 · Supports Funding round · amount
“has just closed its oversubscribed seed round of €5.3 million. The funding round was led by Promus Ventures, with co-investors Vsquared and Cherry Ventures”
- 8
LinkedIn · Supports Funding round, Organization · employee range, Organization · founded year, Organization · hq city, Organization · hq region, Role
“funding round: Convertible Note, 2023-09-29”
People1
- 9
The Exploration Company · Supports Role
“The Exploration Company was founded in 2021 by Hélène Huby and a team of aerospace veterans who had worked on some of the most complex global space programs.”
Each fact on this page is attached to the sources that support it. Archived copies are linked when we keep one.