SPACE.HAUS — WEEKLY INTEL BRIEFING Thursday, April 2, 2026 ============================================================ Sources scanned: 50 Companies with news: 17 Funding activity: $175.5M+ Top story: SpaceX files for $1.75T IPO Canonical: https://space.haus/briefings/2026-04-02.html Interactive: https://space.haus/briefing/2026-04-02 FUNDING ROUNDS & INVESTMENT ACTIVITY ------------------------------------ Aspect Aerospace — N/A [FUNDING] • Apr 1 — Aspect Aerospace secured early-stage funding to advance its swarm-deployable Very Low Earth Orbit (VLEO) satellite technology. Funding amount not disclosed. (https://spacenews.com/aspect-aerospace-secures-early-funding-to-advance-swarm-deployable-vleo-satellites/) Starcloud — N/A [FUNDING] • Apr 1 — Starcloud raised $170M to scale orbital data centers and advance AI computing infrastructure in space. (https://orbitaltoday.com/2026/04/01/ai-in-orbit-starclouds-170m-raise-pushes-the-idea-forward/) Anvil Robotics — N/A [FUNDING] • Apr 2 — Anvil Robotics, an eight-month-old startup building a 'Legos for robots' platform for physical AI teams, raised $5.5M in seed funding. (https://news.crunchbase.com/robotics/physical-ai-custom-robot-builder-seed-funding-anvil/) CONTRACTS, AWARDS & GOVERNMENT ACTIVITY --------------------------------------- Spire Global — Vienna, VA [CONTRACT, LAUNCH] • Apr 1 — Spire Global successfully deployed a satellite for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency's (NGA) MagQuest geomagnetic challenge, demonstrating capabilities in geomagnetic data collection from orbit. (https://satnews.com/2026/04/01/spire-global-successfully-deploys-satellite-for-nga-magquest-geomagnetic-challenge/) ThrustMe — France [CONTRACT, PARTNERSHIP] • Apr 2 — ThrustMe will equip 40 Japanese Earth observation satellites with its propulsion systems, announced during French President Macron's visit to Japan. The partnership marks a significant expansion into the Asian market. (https://spacewatch.global/2026/04/thrustme-to-equip-40-japanese-eo-satellites-with-its-propulsion-systems-as-macron-visits-japan/) MERGERS, ACQUISITIONS & PARTNERSHIPS ------------------------------------ Phantom Space — Tucson, AZ [M&A] • Apr 2 — Phantom Space acquired a thermal management technologies specialist to support its push into orbital data center operations. The acquisition strengthens Phantom's capabilities in thermal control systems critical for space-based computing infrastructure. (https://spacenews.com/phantom-space-buys-thermal-specialist-to-support-orbital-data-center-push/) SpaceData — N/A [PARTNERSHIP] • Apr 2 — SpaceData partnered with Look Up to build a Space Situational Awareness (SSA) data platform in Japan, expanding joint capabilities in tracking and monitoring objects in orbit. (https://spacewatch.global/2026/04/spacedata-and-look-up-are-partnering-to-build-a-space-situational-awareness-data-platform-in-japan/) LAUNCH ACTIVITY & MISSION MILESTONES ------------------------------------ NASA — Washington, DC [LAUNCH] • Apr 1 — NASA successfully launched Artemis 2 at 6:35 PM EDT on April 1, 2026, sending four astronauts on the first crewed mission to the Moon in over 50 years. The mission will conduct a 10-day lunar flyby to test Orion spacecraft systems and ESA's European Service Module. A minor toilet malfunction was reported but crews are troubleshooting. (https://spacenews.com/artemis-2-launches-on-first-mission-to-the-moon-in-more-than-50-years/) ESA (Juice Mission) — Paris, France [OPS UPDATE] • Apr 2 — ESA's Juice spacecraft captured new observations of interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS, revealing five key scientific findings about its composition and behavior. The mission characterized the comet as 'extreme but not exotic' based on initial data from the JANUS science camera. (https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Juice/Five_things_Juice_has_revealed_about_Comet_3I_ATLAS_already) INDUSTRY CONTEXT ---------------- SpaceX — Hawthorne, CA [FUNDING] • Apr 1 — SpaceX has confidentially filed for an IPO with the SEC, according to Bloomberg and CNBC reports. The offering, internally codenamed 'Project Apex,' is potentially valued at $1.75 trillion and has lined up 21 banks to manage what could be the largest IPO in history. Under SEC rules, the S-1 prospectus must be made public within 15 days of the offering. (https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/01/spacex-files-confidentially-for-ipo-in-mega-listing-potentially-valued-at-1-75-trillion-report-says/) European Union (Iris2) — Brussels, Belgium [CONTRACT] • Apr 1 — Europe's Iris2 constellation program appears ready to pass go-ahead review after adopting compromises and securing approval from SES. The sovereign secure communications constellation represents a major EU space infrastructure initiative. (https://www.spaceintelreport.com/europes-iris2-constellation-after-adopting-compromises-and-securing-ses-approval-looks-ready-to-pass-go-ahead-review/) FCC — Washington, DC [OPS UPDATE] • Mar 31 — The FCC issued a notice seeking public comment on expanding spectrum access for non-traditional space applications, colloquially referred to as 'weird space stuff,' signaling potential regulatory changes for novel orbital operations. (https://satnews.com/2026/04/01/fcc-seeks-comment-on-expanding-spectrum-access-for-weird-space-stuff/) ADDITIONAL UPDATES ------------------ Fortastra — N/A [OPS UPDATE] • Apr 2 — Fortastra added executives from Relativity Space, Hermeus, Astrion, and Divergent to its C-suite, signaling aggressive team expansion and growth plans. (https://spacenews.com/relativity-hermeus-astrion-and-divergent-executives-join-fortastra-c-suite/) Teledyne — Thousand Oaks, CA [OPS UPDATE] • Apr 1 — Teledyne formed a dedicated space business unit to capture rising demand across the space sector, consolidating its space-related operations and signaling increased focus on the commercial space market. (https://spacenews.com/teledyne-forms-dedicated-space-unit-to-capture-rising-demand/) Measat Global — Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia [OPS UPDATE] • Apr 1 — Measat Global appointed John Loke as Chief Technology Officer to oversee digital evolution and regional strategy, strengthening technical leadership. (https://www.satellitetoday.com/people/2026/04/01/measat-appoints-new-cto/) Arianespace — Evry-Courcouronnes, France [LAUNCH, OPS UPDATE] • Apr 1 — Arianespace CEO David Cavaillolès previewed Ariane 6 ramp-up plans amid the ongoing Amazon Leo launch campaign. The next mission for Amazon is planned for April following the first launch in February. (https://www.satellitetoday.com/satshow-2026/2026/04/01/live-in-the-booth-arianespace-ceo-david-cavailloles-previews-ariane-6-ramp-up/) CanarySat Satellite Services — Canary Islands, Spain [OPS UPDATE] • Apr 1 — CanarySat CEO Antonio Abad outlined the sovereign, secure approach behind the Magec Ka-band LEO constellation unveiled at SATShow Week. The Arquimea-backed operator is emerging from Spain's Canary Islands. (https://www.satellitetoday.com/partner-content/2026/04/01/canarysat-ceo-antonio-abad-outlines-the-sovereign-secure-approach-behind-the-magec-constellation/) ============================================================ Generated by space.haus · AI-curated from 50+ industry sources. Verify before making business decisions.