October 8, 2026 Fortastra News release
Fortastra raises $30 million in Series A funding to scale maneuverable spacecraft for on-orbit security
Los Angeles, CA — October 8, 2026: Fortastra, a developer of maneuverable, resilient spacecraft for on-orbit security and national defense, today announced the close of its $30 million Series A. The round was led by First In with participation from Upfront Ventures, Space Capital, Rsquared, Side Door Ventures, ATX Ventures, amongst others as well as existing investors. The round will be used to accelerate development and commissioning of Fortastra’s on-orbit security platforms, expand the company's engineering and operations team, and continue developing its core autonomy and manufacturing capabilities.
The demand for on-orbit security is increasing alongside the rapid expansion of national security and commercial space assets. Fortastra’s maneuverable spacecraft are designed to hold position near critical assets, evaluate surrounding activity, and respond to potential threats in real time. The company aims to establish persistent, multi-orbit security coverage through mass deployment and high-rate manufacturing in close partnership with commercial and defense leaders.
"We went from seed funding to on-orbit in about a year, and that pace is a direct result of the people in this building," said Mike Smayda, Founder and CEO of Fortastra.
"Members of the core team have all built and flown difficult projects before and came here because protecting assets in orbit is a critical problem that needs solutions. The raise allows us to transition from our initial operational success with Watchdog V0 to an operational capability we can take into full-rate production. While national security priorities drive our immediate focus, commercial satellite operators will be demanding similar defense capabilities and adjacent civil use cases sooner than industry forecasts anticipate," Smayda continued.
Having achieved its seed milestones and secured initial government contracts, Fortastra is now scaling its engineering team, focusing on flight software, GNC, and autonomy, and expanding its manufacturing infrastructure to build a modular spacecraft bus optimized for high-rate production.
"Proximity operations gate every capability we are building, so the work now is compressing the time between design, build, and flight," said Josh Jetter, CTO of Fortastra. "This round funds engineering talent that can execute relative navigation and proximity maneuvers, a perception stack that identifies what the spacecraft is seeing in real time, and a cost optimized bus designed for high-rate production and mission effectiveness. Each of those depends on growing our core engineering and manufacturing capability."
"Modern space missions demand technology that is operationally ready and can scale," said Sahil Desai, VP of Product at Fortastra. "Over the last few years, we've seen many new entrants bring cheaper, more effective warfighter capabilities on the ground and in the air. At Fortastra, we are asking ourselves why can't we do the same in space? This funding will enable Fortastra to prototype our next spacecraft at unprecedented speed. Furthermore, we will be designing the production architecture in parallel, proving we build at rate."
“Never before have public and private US space assets been more critical to the functioning of everyday life, but also more vulnerable to disruption by a variety of adversaries,” said Arthur Karell, General Partner at First In. “The Fortastra team is rapidly solving that gap by producing high-performance, low-cost space defenses. They are making mass-as-a-virtue an attainable strategy in orbit. First In is honored to lead this group of investors in empowering Mike and the Fortastra team to continue building for our collective space security.”
The round follows a run of recent Fortastra milestones, including the launch of Watchdog V0, a memorandum of understanding with manufacturer Hadrian to apply precision machining and additive manufacturing to national security spacecraft programs; along with the appointment of Scott Klempner, former Deputy Program Executive Officer for Space Combat Power at Space Systems Command, as Director of Product, National Security.
About Fortastra
Fortastra designs and operates maneuverable spacecraft for on-orbit security. Headquartered in Torrance, California, Fortastra combines modern engineering practices, high-rate spacecraft manufacturing, and advanced autonomy to protect critical space infrastructure and deliver consistent operational advantage for the United States and its allies.
Media Contact
Jack Buttacavoli media@fortastra.com