Accion Systems builds tiled ionic-liquid electrospray (TILE) propulsion systems that use an ionic liquid propellant and electrospray emitters to generate thrust. The TILE design produces small, postage-stamp-sized thruster tiles that are modular and scalable from CubeSats to larger spacecraft. The company is developing a fourth-generation TILE system that increases emitter density nearly tenfold to deliver more thrust in the same area. Accion plans to ship its first fourth-gen thruster systems in mid to late summer 2022 and will scale manufacturing to support those deliveries. The company was founded in 2014 by Natalya Bailey and Louis Perna and manufactures and assembles its products at a facility in Charlestown, Massachusetts. TILE hardware has already flown on commercial spacecraft from Astra Digital and NanoAvionics on SpaceX’s Transporter-2 launch. Accion Systems develops the TILE (Tiled Ionic Liquid Electrospray) propulsion system, using postage-stamp-size ion electrospray thrusters and a non-toxic ionic liquid propellant to bring electric propulsion to small satellites. The TILE system is designed to increase satellite lifespan, maneuverability, station-keeping and de-orbiting capabilities while being smaller, lighter and more cost-effective than traditional ion engines. The company was spun out of MIT in 2014 and is based in Boston, MA; founders are Natalya Bailey and Louis Perna, with Bailey serving as CEO. Accion has multiple launches scheduled in 2020, including collaborations with the Irvine CubeSat STEM Program and MIT’s BeaverCube educational mission. It was selected as one of 14 companies in NASA’s Tipping Point partnership and received $3.9 million to work with JPL to replace cold gas propulsion on MarCO CubeSat replicas, with that project slated to launch in summer 2021. The company plans to ramp up production of its next-generation product and expand hiring. Accion Systems develops a tiled ionic liquid electrospray (TILE) propulsion system that can be scaled from postage‑stamp size upward. The company has tested TILE in terrestrial facilities and in space, though it has not yet flown on operational missions. Two student‑engineered cubesats equipped with TILE thrusters are scheduled to launch on RocketLab's 'It's Business Time' commercial payload in early November, and the IRVINE 02 cubesat carrying TILEs is slated to fly on a Falcon 9 resupply mission. Accion said the new funding will be used for research, operations, and staff expenses. Founder and CEO Natalya Bailey recently presented the technology at Disrupt. The company's last major fundraise was a $7.5 million round in 2016. Accion Systems commercialized a miniature electrospray ion engine developed at MIT that is small enough to include on small satellites and can be arrayed to scale for larger spacecraft. Each engine is about the size of a penny and generates thrust by accelerating charged particles at high speeds. The company says its patented design offers a longer operational lifetime than competitor Busek’s equivalent electrospray product. Accion has signed three initial partners—one government and two commercial—with first deliveries slated for 2017. Financially, the company previously raised $2.0 million in seed funding and secured $6.5 million through Department of Defense partnerships. With new capital, Accion plans to transition from engineering and product development into full production, grow the team, and build an operational foundation to start delivering orders. Accion Systems develops advanced electric propulsion systems for small satellites. The company is led by CEO and founder Natalya Brikner and is based in Cambridge, MA. Over the past year it began taking pre-orders for its first product, which is in development and slated to launch later in 2015. The startup raised seed funding to support product development and sales and to continue R&D into next‑generation materials and manufacturing techniques. Funds will also be used to hire engineers, materials scientists, and a sales and business development hire. No operating metrics were disclosed in the article.

Total raised

$66M

Funding rounds

5

Latest round

Series C

Latest activity

Jul 2021