Key Takeaways
- Stoke Space is developing fully and rapidly reusable rockets for both stages.
- This innovation aims to significantly lower spaceflight costs and increase access.
- Co-founders Andy Lapsa and Tom Feldman launched Stoke Space in 2019.
- The company has raised $990 million and plans an orbital launch this year.
Deep Dive
- Stoke Space, founded in 2019 by former Blue Origin engineers Andy Lapsa and Tom Feldman, aims to build fully reusable rockets.
- The company seeks to make both first and second stages reusable, a departure from current industry practices that discard the expensive second stage.
- This innovation is projected to significantly lower costs, improve space access, and potentially increase annual commercial launches beyond 150.
- The founders initiated the venture by taking significant personal risks, leaving established careers due to their confidence in a viable solution.
- The co-founders left their jobs in September 2019, giving themselves six months to gain traction.
- Facing the COVID-19 pandemic, they secured their first investment within that six-month period.
- Initial hardware development involved building and testing a prototype engine in a shipping container in a backyard.
- They applied to Y Combinator due to underestimated fundraising challenges and a lack of industry connections for hardware-intensive ventures.
- Stoke Space has raised approximately $990 million to date, operating with a focus on efficiency.
- In 2024, the company acquired a new 168,000 square foot factory with a goal to build seven vehicles per year.
- Their next major milestone is a planned orbital launch scheduled for later this year.
- The company emphasizes in-house manufacturing for rapid iteration, reducing development cycles from months to days.
- Stoke Space is establishing a launch site at Cape Canaveral's historic complex 14.
- The company is developing its own software tool, Boltline, to manage maintenance and operational data as it scales from prototyping to launching government payloads.
- Development is underway for first and second stage engines, structures, and avionics.
- Hardware-in-the-loop testing of simulated missions is being conducted to ensure software and avionics robustness.