Varda raises $251M Series D to make drugs in space
What's the deal? Varda Space Industries has raised US$162.4M Series D, co-led by Lux Capital and Natural CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, to scale its space-based pharmaceutical processing. The round brings the El Segundo, California company's total raised to $598 million.
Who else is in? Founders Fund, Khosla Ventures, Caffeinated Capital, General Catalyst, 8090 IndustriesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Giant StepDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and Also CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → all joined.
What's the endgame? Varda wants to manufacture pharmaceuticals in orbit, where the absence of gravity lets active ingredients crystallise in ways impossible on Earth. The goal is a new class of drug formulations — and to make in-space processing a routine part of the drug development pipeline.
How it works: The company's W-Series vehicles carry materials to orbit and return them via reentry capsules that hit Mach 25 on the way down. Since its first mission in 2023, Varda has completed six successful reentry missions, with more than a dozen more launches and reentries planned through 2028.
What they're saying: "We started Varda with the conviction that the first product manufactured in space and consumed on Earth would be a pharmaceutical," said co-founder and president Delian Asparouhov. The round, he said, will fund more frequent flights and deeper pharmaceutical partnerships.
Lux Capital partner Shahin Farshchi framed Varda as "the first and only company delivering a real cadence of launches and re-entries, with capsules built to manufacture the impossible and return it home."
Why now? Decades of research aboard the International Space Station have shown microgravity's potential to produce drug formulations unattainable on Earth. Varda argues it is now the only company with the launch cadence, reentry capability, and pharmaceutical science team to commercialise that work.
The signal: At $251 million, this Series D ranks in the top 4% of comparable rounds in its industry and region. As launch rates climb across the sector, the ability to bring materials back from orbit — not just send them up — is emerging as foundational infrastructure, and investors are betting Varda can turn that capability into a market.
Read more: prnewswire.com
Image credit: Varda Space
