Volta Space Technologies

About Volta Space Technologies

Volta Space Technologies, a Canadian startup founded in 2020 by CEO Justin Zipkin and CTO Paolo Pino, is developing a lunar energy utility to power robotic assets on the Moon. The company's core mission is to overcome the limitation of the two-week lunar night, which restricts the operational lifespan of lunar missions. Volta aims to provide a continuous and affordable power supply, enabling sustained exploration and the development of a permanent human presence on the Moon.

The company's key technology is the LightGrid, a constellation of satellites in low lunar orbit that collect solar energy and transmit it via laser beams to receivers on the lunar surface. These receivers, called LightPorts, are designed to be lightweight (under 3 kg) and are mounted on customer equipment like rovers and landers. This system of wireless power transmission is designed to offer both electrical power and thermal energy, the latter helping to protect equipment from the extreme cold of the lunar night. The business model is structured as a pay-as-you-go service, similar to a utility, which reduces the upfront cost and mass requirements for individual lunar missions that would otherwise need to carry their own heavy batteries or power generation systems. As more customers join the network, the cost per client is expected to decrease.

The concept for Volta originated during an International Space University pitch competition where Zipkin and Pino explored its feasibility. A significant milestone was winning the NASA Watts on the Moon challenge in 2021, which provided initial credibility and a $50,000 prize. This was followed by a seed funding round in 2022 led by MaC Venture Capital and Industrious Ventures. Volta has also secured contracts and grants from the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), the European Space Agency (ESA), the U.S. Department of Defense, and NATO's DIANA accelerator. The company has reported term sheets from future customers valued at over a quarter of a billion dollars and is planning a Series A funding round to support the deployment of its initial satellite network, projected for 2028.