Venus Aerospace raises $90M Series B for a new rocket engine
Venus Aerospace raises 90m in a Series B to fund testing and development of its Rotating Detonation Rocket Engine, an approach the company describes as ultra-efficient for launching payloads. The round, led by Mercury Fund with Lockheed Martin Ventures and others, signals fresh investor appetite for next-step hypersonic weapons and high-speed space vehicles.
Founded in 2020 by CEO Sassie Duggleby and CTO Andrew Duggleby, Venus initially aimed at clean-flying hypersonic jets for passenger travel. After successfully demonstrating the engine, it shifted toward hypersonic weapons development—replacing solid rocket motors that power many missiles—and toward high-speed space vehicles.
Key Takeaways
- Venus announced a $90 million Series B focused on engine and vehicle development.
- The round is led by Mercury Fund with participation from Lockheed Martin Ventures and others.
- Company priorities include hypersonic weapons thrusters and high-speed space applications.
- New testing capacity is key: the longest prior runs were 32 seconds, but customers likely want 6 to 15 minutes.
What does the Venus Aerospace raises 90m round let it do?
According to TechCrunch, Venus Aerospace announced a $90 million Series B to help the company fund testing and development work tied to specific vehicle designs with potential customers. The funding round was led by Mercury Fund, with participation from Lockheed Martin Ventures, MESH, PEAK6, Draper Associates, Starboard Star Venture Capital, and Green Sands Equity.
Venus also said the goal is to move beyond demonstration and into customer-relevant engineering work. That includes building the infrastructure to test for longer durations, since its customers’ expectations are more demanding than its current test times.
How does RDRE move the needle for rockets?
RDRE—Rotating Detonation Rocket Engine—is central to Venus’s new push. TechCrunch frames it as an ultra-efficient way to hurl stuff into the sky, and it notes that Venus’s plans evolved after a successful engine demonstration last year.
The company traces key milestones back to a first working test in 2020 at the University of Central Florida. It also points to earlier RDRE progress by NASA (demonstrated on the ground in 2022) and JAXA (fired one for a few seconds in space in 2021). Venus’s own 2025 result was described as the first time an RDRE launched a rocket into flight.
For propulsion basics and how rocket engines produce thrust, see NASA’s overview here: Rocket Propulsion (NASA Glenn).
Why are big space valuations back in focus?
The Venus update lands amid broader signs of investor urgency in space. In another TechCrunch report, Blue Origin was reportedly raising $10 billion at a $130 billion pre-money valuation, with Coatue Asset Management expected to lead at about $4 billion, Jeff Bezos committing about $2 billion, and other large investors accounting for the remainder.
Even without matching details of propulsion architecture, the pattern is clear: capital is moving toward companies and technologies that claim the next step in performance, scale, and customer readiness. For more on emerging tech bets, explore our Future Tech & AI Wonders coverage.
What else is “Venus” investing in tech right now?
Not every “Venus” headline is about rockets. TechCrunch also reported that WeWard, backed by tennis star and angel investor Venus Williams, is launching “Walking Mode,” letting users restrict access to chosen apps until they hit a customizable step count.
The app says the feature is meant to motivate walking while reducing screen time, and it reports that it has increased walking time by almost 25%. It’s a different domain, but it’s the same theme: product design that pushes users toward measurable outcomes.
For Venus Aerospace, the immediate question now is whether its upgraded test capacity—accelerated by a Texas Space Commission grant to build a new, larger test stand—can close the gap between shorter engine firings and the 6 to 15 minutes burns its customers are likely to require.