Participated · Seed · Mar 2026

PAVE Space is developing a family of orbital transfer vehicles (OTVs) including a flagship kickstage using storable bipropellants and a smaller mobile platform for rapid satellite repositioning. The vehicles are designed to transport satellites from low Earth orbit to higher-energy destinations such as geostationary and lunar orbits in under 24 hours. PAVE aims to offer a launcher-agnostic logistics layer compatible with multiple launch systems and to serve commercial and institutional customers including satellite operators, telecom providers and defence organisations. The company is preparing its first in-space demonstration mission and has secured early reservation agreements with satellite operators. With the $40 million seed round, PAVE will accelerate development, expand its engineering team, conduct initial demonstrations and ready its platforms for commercial deployments. CEO and co-founder Julie Böhning has framed the effort as building infrastructure to enable industries to move, operate and scale beyond Earth while supporting Europe’s strategic autonomy in space.

Participated · Series B · Feb 2026

Founded in 2021, Paris-based Vizzia delivers video-surveillance solutions purpose-built for municipalities. Its hardware uses 4G/5G connectivity, allowing cameras to be installed in hours without fibre and redeployed as needs change. The platform also offers AI-driven software that accelerates image analysis and supports law-enforcement investigations. Vizzia’s systems are used by more than 250 municipalities in France and abroad to combat issues such as fly-tipping and to enhance public safety. The company currently employs about 100 staff and plans to add 150 more hires in 2026. With the latest financing, total capital raised approaches €50 million, which will fund continued technology development and expansion across France, the United Kingdom, and Italy.

Led · Equity · Jan 2026

Founded in March 2025, Recupere Metals is a French startup tackling the looming copper supply gap by recycling scrap copper directly into new wire. Its patented mechanical technology bypasses traditional smelting and refining, lowering energy consumption while producing wire that meets industrial specifications for electric motors, data centres and other digital infrastructure. The company is currently running pilot tests with prospective customers to fine-tune volumes and technical characteristics, and it plans to monetise through direct sales of copper wire. Management targets production costs on par with conventionally mined copper despite relying exclusively on recycled feedstock. With fresh funding, Recupere Metals aims to scale from laboratory work to full industrial production and to build local recycling-based supply chains that reduce Europe’s dependence on imported copper. The startup ultimately envisions annual output of 6,000 tonnes of copper wire by 2028.

Participated · Series A · Feb 2023

The Exploration Company is developing Nyx, a reusable spacecraft designed to carry up to 3,000 kilograms of cargo to and from Earth, with a target maiden flight to the ISS in 2028. The startup was founded three years ago by Hélène Huby, Sebastien Reichstat, and Pierre Vine and operates out of Germany, France, and Italy. The new funding will support continued development and testing after the company flew a demonstrator on Ariane 6 (not deployed) and plans a second sub-scale mission, Mission Possible, on a Falcon 9 next year. The company has won an ESA LEO Cargo Return Service study contract worth around €25 million ($27 million) running through 2026. Financially, the Series B brings the company’s total funding to over $208 million and follows a reported $770 million contract backlog, about 90% of which comes from private station developers Vast, Axiom Space, and Starlab. The Exploration Company is a space tech startup based in Bordeaux, France and Munich, Germany, founded in 2019 by Hélène Huby. It is developing Nyx, a modular, reusable and in-orbit refuelable vehicle designed to carry cargo and, in the longer run, humans, with open-interface software and hardware. The company raised €40m in a Series A to advance its vehicle program. The round was co-led by EQT Ventures and Red River West with participation from Promus Ventures, Cherry Ventures, Vsquared, Omnes Capital, July Fund, Partech, Possible Ventures, Habert Dassault Finance, Schlumberger and Sista Fund. The Exploration Company intends to use the funds to commercialize Nyx Mission Odyssey, finalize and launch a second vehicle, and expand the team. No operating metrics (revenue or user numbers) were disclosed in the article. The Exploration Company is developing Nyx, a reusable, refuel-able orbital vehicle composed of a service module and a reusable capsule. Nyx is designed to carry up to 4,000 kilograms to low Earth orbit for missions up to six months; the service module could be reusable and refueled using in-space resource utilization. The startup plans to fly the Bikini reentry demonstrator aboard an Ariane 6 rocket this October, follow with a full-scale prototype in 2024 on SpaceX, and target Nyx’s maiden flight in 2026. Founders Hélène Huby, Artur Koop and Jon Reijneveld (with Sébastien Reichstat and Pierre Vinet) left Airbus to form the company, and management largely comes from large aerospace corporations. The Exploration Company has raised around €11.5 million to date, including a €5.3 million seed led by Promus Ventures with participation from Vsquared and Cherry Ventures, and its headcount has grown to around 30 people. The company was selected for AWS’s 2022 Space Accelerator, has referred to Orbital Reef as a partner, plans to open a U.S. subsidiary next year, and intends to develop a human-rated version of Nyx longer term.