Shield Capital, Andreessen Horowitz Co-Lead Apex Series A Funding Round

Apex, the Los Angeles-based spacecraft mass manufacturing company builds productized satellite buses, starting with their flagship Aries platform, a 100kg bus capable of supporting up to 100 kg of payload mass.

San Francisco, CA — Apex, the Los Angeles-based spacecraft mass manufacturing company, announced its Series A fundraising round and customers flying on its first Aries satellite bus. Apex’s $16M Series A funding round, brings the company’s total funding to over $27M.  The round was co-led by venture capital firms Andreessen Horowitz and Shield Capital.

Apex builds productized satellite buses, starting with their flagship Aries platform, a 100kg bus capable of supporting up to 100 kg of payload mass. Apex buses are manufactured at scale and can be configured with different performance packages, enabling Apex customers to leverage the benefits of serial production for varied mission needs.

Apex will use the additional funding to open a new, 50,000 sq ft production facility in Los Angeles dedicated to serial bus manufacturing. This investment and the new factory will allow the company to expand its production rate and further reduce lead times for its  customers.

“We’re really excited about Apex’s approach to satellite manufacturing,” said Raj Shah, managing partner at Shield Capital. “Given the surge in launch capacity, Apex's configurable approach for space vehicles will accelerate the Space economy. We are thrilled to partner with Ian and Max - world class founders who are tracking to go from clean sheet design to launch in twelve months.”

Apex announced the list of customers flying on its first Aries satellite bus, set to launch on SpaceX’s Transporter 10 in Q1 2024. The satellite will host missions for three customers. Orbit Fab, Ubotica, and a Tier 1 Defense Contractor are all flying as payloads on Apex’s first mission.

About Shield Capital

Shield Capital is a Silicon Valley headquartered venture capital firm that supports innovators building solutions for commercial and government customers to secure our future.  Shield Capital invests in frontier technologies including cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, autonomy, and space.  At SHIELD, the mission matters.

Learn more at www.shieldcap.com
Contact: media@shieldcap.com