ElevationSpace Completes Series B Funding of 6.4 Billion Yen, Bringing Total Funding to 10.1 Billion Yen

ElevationSpace Inc. (CEO: Ryohei Kobayashi, headquarters: Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture), a company developing infrastructure services from space to Earth centered on Japan’s world-renowned small satellite re-entry technology, has completed a third-party allotment capital increase raising a record total of 6.4 billion yen in its Series B funding round.

This brings the company’s total funding since its founding to 10.1 billion yen, highlighting growing interest in the space transportation and low Earth orbit (LEO) service markets.

◼️ Background of the Funding

Leveraging Japan’s unique expertise in small lifting body re-entry guidance technology—essential for returning people and cargo from space stations to Earth—ElevationSpace is developing the space environment utilization and recovery platform "ELS-R" and the small, high-frequency Earth return transportation service "ELS-RS" from manned LEO bases. The first re-entry satellite of ELS-R, "Aoba," the first privately developed re-entry satellite in Japan, has completed its Critical Design Review (CDR) and is now undergoing flight model assembly.

Since its pre-Series B funding, ElevationSpace has aggressively advanced global partnerships, including collaboration with Axiom Space on high-frequency atmospheric re-entry and recovery services, and joint development plans with Redwire to integrate its biopharmaceutical technologies into ElevationSpace’s platform. The company has also expanded its team to over 80 members, strengthening its development organization.

ElevationSpace has demonstrated steady and ambitious progress in technology, organizational structure, and business development toward realizing space-to-Earth transportation and space environment utilization services as next-generation space infrastructure. This includes being selected for the "High-Frequency Material Recovery System Technology" project under Japan’s Space Strategy Fund, participating as a collaborating organization in the "Foundational Safety Technologies for Manned Space Transportation Systems," and announcing cross-theme collaboration with Japan Low Orbit Society to establish LEO activity infrastructure for the post-ISS era.

The funds raised in this round will be allocated to the development and operation of ElevationSpace’s space-to-Earth transportation and space environment utilization services, as well as global expansion, to further advance the company’s business trajectory.

Third-Party Allotment Subscribers (in no particular order)

Investors

Asset Management Firms

Space Frontier No. 2 Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

Sparks Asset Management Co., Ltd.

Beyond Next Ventures No. 3 Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

Beyond Next Ventures Inc.

EEI No. 5 Innovation & Impact Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

Environmental Energy Investment Co., Ltd.

Simplex Growth Capital No. 1 Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

Simplex Capital Investment Co., Ltd.

Technology Ventures No. 6 Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

Itochu Techno-Ventures Inc.

Nissay Capital No. 15 Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

Nissay Capital Co., Ltd.

Animal Spirits LLC

Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.

Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd.

TAKANAWA GATEWAY Earth-Benefit Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

Global Brain Corporation

Mitsubishi UFJ Capital No. 10 Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

Mitsubishi UFJ Capital Co., Ltd.

NTT Docomo Innovation Fund No. 2 Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

NTT Docomo Ventures Inc.

NX Global Innovation Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

SBI Investment Co., Ltd.

ZVC No. 2 Investment Business Partnership

Z Venture Capital Co., Ltd.

Resona Capital No. 8 Investment Business Partnership

Resona Capital Co., Ltd.

Employment Creation Fund

Pasona Venture Partners LLC

SMBC Venture Capital Co., Ltd.

Aozora HYBRID No. 3 Investment Business Limited Liability Partnership

Aozora Corporate Investment Co., Ltd.

Individual Investors

Comments from Investors (in no particular order)

Beyond Next Ventures Inc. President & Managing Partner: Takeshi Ito Principal, Investment Division: Hiroyuki Kageyama

Following our initial Series A investment in 2024, we co-led the Series B round. ElevationSpace has established a unique and unrivaled position in Japan as the only company focused on the 'return journey' from space to Earth, built on its highly distinctive small capsule re-entry technology.

One of the key management challenges we emphasized at our initial investment was hiring a CFO capable of leading large-scale fundraising. The company successfully addressed this, and we highly commend the management team’s execution capability, particularly the new CFO Mr. Imakubo, who joined in 2025 and successfully completed this funding round as planned.

Thanks to a robust management structure and relentless on-site efforts, spacecraft development is progressing smoothly. Multiple selections by the Space Strategy Fund and accelerated domestic and international partnerships have significantly increased the likelihood of commercial success. We strongly believe ElevationSpace, leveraging Japan’s strengths in space development, will make unique contributions to the global space industry and will continue to support them closely.

Sparks Asset Management Co., Ltd. President: Shuhei Abe Vice President, Space Investment Team: Shokichi Hasegawa

ElevationSpace operates with re-entry technology as a core, which is essential for enabling the movement of goods and people between Earth and space. Since our Series A investment in 2024, we have observed steady progress in both the development of the first satellite and overall business operations, along with significant organizational strengthening.

As a co-lead investor in this Series B round, we are making an additional investment with the expectation that the company’s business will now move toward full realization. We will continue to support ElevationSpace as it pioneers new frontiers in the global space industry.

Environmental Energy Investment Co., Ltd. Director & Partner: Kengo Nakamura Capitalist: Chihiro Ozaki

We are honored to participate as a co-lead investor in the Series B round.

ElevationSpace’s re-entry and guidance technologies are key enablers for establishing transportation infrastructure between Earth and space, and across space as a whole. We have high hopes that such world-class, Japan-originated technologies will become a central hub in the global space industry. We are delighted to be partnering with ElevationSpace at this pivotal moment.

While the company has already expanded its operations domestically and internationally, we look forward to its further global leap and will continue to support its growth.

Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. (DNP)

General Manager, Marketing Division Senior Executive Officer: Ryota Chiba

We sincerely congratulate ElevationSpace on the successful completion of its Series B funding round. We are also very pleased to participate as a shareholder in the company’s ambitious efforts to realize a space environment utilization and recovery platform.

We believe the space-to-Earth transportation and space environment utilization services that ElevationSpace is developing will become a critical foundation supporting low Earth orbit utilization in the post-ISS era.