Rocket Lab USA Inc. has had a busy week.
The Long Beach, California-based aerospace company is one launch closer to attempting mid-air recovery of its Electron rocket’s first stage with the successful introduction of helicopter operations to its recovery mission.
Rocket Lab (Nasdaq: RKLB) launched two satellites to orbit for geospatial monitoring company BlackSky (NYSE: BKSY) this week, as well as used a helicopter to observe and track the rocket booster as it descended to Earth under a parachute.
“This is our third successful proof-of-concept recovery mission, and further cements Electron as the leading launch vehicle for the small satellite market,” said Rocket Lab founder and CEO Peter Beck. “We are all excited to move onto the next phase of reusability next year; catching Electron in the air with a helicopter.”
Meanwhile, Rocket Lab also inked a deal to acquire Planetary Systems Corp., a Maryland-based spacecraft separation systems company, for $42 million in cash plus 1.7 million shares of common stock. The acquisition is expected to close in Q4.
And the company signed an exclusive license agreement with the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) to commercialize near and deep space capable small spacecraft telemetry and control radio technology.
Hyperloop cabin
Back on the ground, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies has unveiled its vision for its hyperloop capsule experience designed in collaboration with Icona Design Group.
The Playa Vista firm said the cabin design will be installed in its first commercial passenger prototype system.
The class-free cabin offers each passenger a fully personalized space, with an artificial skylight, advanced air purification system, interactive displays, digital wayfinding, personal tablets and biometric sensors.
“Everything we build at HyperloopTT is developed with a focus on safety and comfort,” said CEO Andres De Leon. “Beyond a concept and vision, our teams and partners have created a true evolution of the passenger experience that is completed and ready to be built and integrated into HyperloopTT systems worldwide.”
Check it out:
Here’s what else Los Angeles-area tech companies got up to this week:
- Acelyrin Inc., a Los Angeles clinical-stage biopharma company developing and commercializing life-changing therapies, has completed a $250 million Series B round led by AyurMaya (an affiliated fund of Matrix Capital Management), Surveyor Capital (a Citadel company) and Westlake Village BioPartners.
- UNest, a North Hollywood fin-tech company that helps parents invest and save for their kids’ future, has raised $26 million in Series B funding led by The Artemis Fund.
- Luxury Presence, the Santa Monica startup that provides real estate agents with websites, marketing plans and networking opportunities, has secured $25.9 million in a Series B led by Bessemer Venture Partners.
- Nommi, a Santa Monica startup automating customizable bowl-based meals, has launched with plans to raise up to $20 million in seed capital and is now open for reservations. Sam Nazarian is leading funding as part of a 50/50 deal to establish robotic Nommi kitchens in partnership with his global food tech platform C3 (Creating Culinary Communities).
- Los Angeles-based Fourthwall, an all-in-one creator commerce platform, has raised $17 million in funding from investors including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Initialized Capital and Seven Seven Six.
- L.A.’s Machina Labs, which offers advanced manufacturing through robotics and artificial intelligence, has emerged from stealth with Series A financing led by Innovation Endeavor, bringing its total raised to $16.3 million.
- Inversion, a Torrance startup building the first low-cost, high-cadence return capability from space for the commercial and defense industries, has closed its seed round totaling $10 million led by Spark Capital.
- Torrance-based Quativa Inc., a residential solar sales platform and marketplace, has received a $7 million growth equity investment from Blueprint Equity, whose managing partner Sheldon Lewis joined Quativa’s board of directors.
- Elude, the Los Angeles travel discovery and booking platform that enables users to plan trips in line with their budget instead of location or price, has raised $3 million in seed funding from new and existing investors.
- Maestro, a Los Angeles provider of interactive live experiences, has launched Maestro for Creators, a completely customizable platform for creators of any size to ditch the dependency on social media platforms and instead build their own branded destination.
- Electric Monster Media Inc., a Los Angeles digital media company that invests in and acquires brand-friendly digital video channels to scale and build their audiences, has completed a major round of fundraising and acquired React Media, which logs 200 million monthly views across platforms.
