Key Takeaways
- Italian startup ORiS secured €5 million ($5.7 million) in pre‑seed funding plus a €500 k regional grant to advance laser‑based wireless power‑beaming for satellites.
- The technology has already been validated on the ground, powering drones at 100 m range, and is being commercialised through the terrestrial LOONA system, which has attracted NATO’s DIANA support.
- ORiS plans two in‑space demonstrations in early 2027 (10 m laser link with Dcubed and a second undisclosed partner) before launching a paid service mission with an existing satellite‑hosting customer.
- Unlike competitors that concentrate sunlight (e.g., Star Catcher), ORiS uses compact laser arrays, trading higher development cost for smaller, launch‑friendly hardware and the ability to serve many small spacecraft via a constellation.
- The company envisions a dual‑use roadmap: near‑term revenue from LOONA on Earth, mid‑term space power‑beaming services, and long‑term lunar applications to sustain missions during the 14‑day lunar night.
Overview of ORiS and Its Funding Milestone
Washington‑based reporting highlights that ORiS, a Turin‑born startup, announced on July 21 that it raised a total of €5 million ($5.7 million) to accelerate its wireless power‑beaming initiative. The core of the round consisted of €4.5 million in pre‑seed equity, led by Earlybird and co‑led by Pitchdrive, with additional participation from Galaxia, Vento, and the Piemonte Next Fund. Complementing the equity, ORiS obtained a €500 000 grant from an Italian regional program aimed at nurturing high‑potential startups. This financial package will enable the 15‑person team to move from laboratory validation to flight demonstrations and begin building a commercial service.
How the Laser Power‑Beaming Technology Works
At the heart of ORiS’s solution is a laser system designed to transmit electrical energy from one spacecraft to another without physical connectors. According to co‑founder and CEO Andrea Villa, the architecture combines multiple lasers to ensure compatibility with existing satellite platforms and any type of solar panel, eliminating the need for bespoke receivers. In space, a “power‑beaming” satellite equipped with the laser array would fire a coherent beam toward a target satellite; the latter’s conventional solar arrays would capture the photons and convert them into electricity, effectively augmenting or replacing onboard power stores. The approach mirrors free‑space optical communication but is tuned for energy delivery rather than data.
Ground‑Based Validation and the LOONA Terrestrial System
Before venturing into orbit, ORiS proved the concept on Earth. The company directed its laser beam at drones hovering 100 meters away, successfully delivering enough power to keep them aloft. This terrestrial experiment has evolved into a standalone product line called LOONA, which offers wireless power delivery for ground‑based applications such as remote sensors, disaster‑response equipment, or temporary communications nodes. LOONA has already garnered attention from NATO’s Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) program, which sees dual‑use potential in both civilian and military contexts. Villa noted that the interest from institutional and private entities has motivated ORiS to accelerate LOONA’s market entry, aiming to begin commercial sales by the end of the current year.
Planned In‑Space Demonstrations for 2027
Funding will now enable ORiS to test its laser beaming hardware in orbit. The company has scheduled two demonstration missions for the first quarter of 2027. In the first, ORiS will partner with Dcubed to establish a 10‑metre laser link between two spacecraft, proving the basic pointing, acquisition, and power‑transfer capabilities. A second mission, whose partner remains undisclosed, will replicate the experiment under different orbital conditions to further de‑risk the technology. Villa explained that these flights will demonstrate the “building blocks” of the system, after which ORiS intends to launch a third mission with an early‑stage customer that operates satellites hosting third‑party payloads. The objective of that mission is to validate the feasibility of offering wireless power as a service.
Partnerships, Customers, and Market Position
While ORiS has not named its forthcoming service customer, Villa indicated that the client is already engaged in the business of hosting payloads for other operators, suggesting a natural fit for power‑beaming as an value‑added service. The company’s strategy hinges on proving reliability and safety through the 2027 flights, then moving to commercial contracts that could range from augmenting power for Earth‑observation constellations to enabling longer‑duration missions for small‑sat platforms. The involvement of experienced venture investors such as Earlybird and Pitchdrive signals confidence that ORiS can bridge the gap between cutting‑edge photonics and a viable space‑based utility.
Contrast with Competing Approaches (Star Catcher Industries)
ORiS’s laser‑centric method differs notably from that of Star Catcher Industries, a Florida‑based rival that recently secured a $65 million Series A round. Star Catcher proposes to concentrate sunlight onto the solar panels of client satellites using large reflective optics, essentially creating a space‑based solar concentrator. Villa highlighted two primary trade‑offs: first, laser systems can be made far more compact than the bulky lenses and mirrors required for solar concentration, which eases launch mass and volume constraints. Second, the optical hardware for Star Catcher may be cheaper to produce and launch, whereas laser diodes, beam‑control optics, and precise pointing mechanisms entail higher upfront development costs. Ultimately, each approach addresses the same problem—delivering extra power to orbiting assets—through distinct engineering pathways.
Strategic Vision: A Constellation for Numerous Small Spacecraft
Beyond the technical comparison, Villa emphasized a conceptual divergence in application focus. Star Catcher has marketed its technology toward orbital data centers and high‑power platforms that benefit from intense, focused illumination. ORiS, by contrast, envisions serving a larger fleet of smaller spacecraft—such as CubeSats, nanosats, and microsatellites—through a network of tens to hundreds of laser‑equipped nodes distributed in orbit. This architecture would allow any satellite within the constellation’s coverage to request a power boost on demand, reducing the need for oversized solar arrays or heavy batteries on each individual unit. The scalability of a laser‑based mesh aligns with the growing trend toward distributed, proliferated LEO constellations.
Dual‑Use Roadmap and Near‑Term Revenue Potential
Investors highlighted ORiS’s dual‑use trajectory as a key attraction. The LOONA terrestrial system provides an immediate revenue stream and a proving ground for the core wireless power technology, allowing the company to refine beam‑steering, safety protocols, and performance metrics under less restrictive regulatory environments. Christiaens, managing partner at Pitchdrive, remarked that LOONA offers a “faster path to validating its core wireless power technology and building commercial momentum” while simultaneously supporting the long‑term ambition of making energy more accessible in space. This approach mitigates the typical long gestation period associated with pure‑play space hardware ventures.
Lunar Ambitions: Extending Power Beaming to the Moon
Looking further ahead, ORiS sees potential to apply its laser beaming concept to lunar exploration. The Moon’s 14‑day night period deprives solar‑dependent assets of power, creating a critical limitation for sustained surface operations. A lunar laser power‑beaming infrastructure—perhaps positioned on a lunar orbiter or a surface‑based relay—could deliver energy to rovers, habitats, or scientific instruments during darkness, effectively extending mission durations and reducing reliance on bulky batteries or nuclear sources. Villa described this as a “seed” being planted today, acknowledging that realization will require considerable technological maturation, international cooperation, and regulatory clearance, but he expressed optimism that the foundational work being done now will pay off in future lunar architectures.
Conclusion and Outlook
ORiS’s recent funding round marks a significant step toward transforming wireless power‑beaming from laboratory curiosity to a serviceable space utility. By leveraging proven ground tests, a clear path to in‑space demonstrations, and a dual‑use strategy that monetizes terrestrial applications first, the company aims to de‑risk its technology while building a customer base. The planned 2027 flight tests will be pivotal in proving that lasers can safely and reliably transfer energy between spacecraft, potentially unlocking new capabilities for small‑sat constellations, lunar missions, and beyond. If successful, ORiS could help reshape satellite power architecture, enabling lighter, more agile spacecraft and supporting the expanding ecosystem of space‑based services.