ABL Space Systems

ABL Space has tried to differentiate itself by organizing around not only the rocket, but also the ground systems - desiging rockets and equipment to fit in standard shipping containers and work with minimal pad infrastructure (a horizontal pad). To date there has been one launch attempt made by the company, which resulted in a failure, landing back near the pad.

Although the company had originally planned to outsource engine development and manufacturer to engine specialist Ursa Major, the company eventually decided to bring engine development in-house - helping them reduce the list price of their rocket launch services down by several million dollars.

• Seed funding round from Lockheed Martin Ventures in 2019.
• Series A funding round of USD 49M from Venrock in 2020.
• Series B funding round of USD 170M raised from T. Rowe Price in 2021.
• Second Series B funding round of USD 200M raised from [unknown], also in 2021.
• Funding round of USD 40M raised from [unknown] in 2023.
• Debt Financing of USD 20M from Leonid Capital Partners in 2024.

The company has been working since 2017 on its RS-1 launcher. In 2024, an accident during a static fire for a second first flight attempt resulted in a fire that destroyed the launcher. The company laid off a large number of staff at that time (early September 2024), while continuing work on the next RS-1 vehicle.