Varda Raises $251M to Scale Space-Based Pharmaceutical Manufacturing

Varda Space Industries has raised $251 million in a Series D financing round to expand its work in space-based pharmaceutical processing and move closer to producing medicines in space for use on Earth.

The latest funding brings Varda’s total capital raised to $598 million. The Series D round was led by Lux Capital and Natural Capital, with participation from Founders Fund, Khosla Ventures, Caffeinated Capital, General Catalyst, 8090 Industries, Giant Step and Also Capital.

Varda is developing technology that uses microgravity to process pharmaceutical materials. The company says the absence of gravity can allow active pharmaceutical ingredients to crystallize in ways that are difficult or impossible to achieve on Earth, potentially supporting new drug formulations.

The company plans to use the new funding to increase the frequency of its space missions, expand pharmaceutical partnerships and advance its goal of producing the first pharmaceutical made in space for patients on Earth.

Varda said decades of research on the International Space Station have shown that microgravity may offer opportunities for pharmaceutical processing. The company is now building commercial systems designed to manufacture materials in orbit and return them safely to Earth.

Since launching its first mission in 2023, Varda has completed six successful reentry missions. It has more than a dozen additional launches and reentries planned through 2028, according to the company. Its W-Series vehicles are designed to return materials from orbit to Earth after reaching speeds of up to Mach 25 during reentry.

Delian Asparouhov, co-founder and President of Varda, said the new funding will help the company increase its flight cadence, strengthen pharmaceutical partnerships and move closer to its goal of bringing a medicine made in space back to Earth.

Varda’s approach is part of a growing effort to explore how microgravity could be used in pharmaceutical manufacturing and drug development. Rather than producing medicines entirely in orbit, the company is focused on using space-based processing to create or improve pharmaceutical materials before returning them to Earth.

The Series D financing provides Varda with additional funding to scale its orbital pharmaceutical manufacturing platform as it works toward making in-space drug processing part of the broader pharmaceutical development pipeline.