(Reuters) – Seraphim Space said on Monday that a unit of the British space investment firm would help provide 12 early-stage U.S. startups with more than $150 million in funding through a new accelerator program.
The 12-week accelerator will be run by Generation Space and focus on startups working in sectors from climate technology and defense to communications and mobility.
Startup accelerators support early-stage companies through education, mentorship and financing. Their examples include Y Combinator, which helped launch companies such as vacation rental firm Airbnb and social media platform Reddit.
Seraphim Space’s move comes at a time when the industry is grappling with a slowdown in funding due to rising fears about the economy. Investment in space startups more than halved last year after a record 2021.
Seraphim Space still sees some positive signs. It said that seed deals were up about 50% in 2022, a sign of investor interest in early-stage startups despite the sagging economy.
The venture capital firm has helped launch $1.2 billion worth satellite communications firm AST SpaceMobile Inc and data and analytics company Spire Global, which has a market valuation of nearly $200 million.
Northern Sky Research last year predicted that the global space industry will rake in revenue of $1.25 trillion by 2030, representing a compounded annual growth rate of 6.25%.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
