Japanese startup Letara raises $16M to build hybrid rockets for space and defense

Japanese space tech startup Letara has secured ¥2.6 billion (approximately $16 million) in new funding to expand beyond its original focus on hybrid thrusters for small satellites and develop large rocket systems for the space, defense, and security markets, co-CEO Shota Hirai told TechCrunch.

The funding round was co-led by Headline Asia, JIC Venture Growth Investment, and Incubate Fund. Strategic investors include NES Corporation, an energy company; Toyoda Gosei, a Toyota Group supplier of rubber and plastic automotive components; and Frontier Innovations, a Greece-based IT company specializing in data analytics and business intelligence.

Letara's core technology is a hybrid rocket design that keeps solid fuel separate from the liquid oxidizer required for combustion. This approach allows the use of inexpensive, widely available materials, potentially lowering launch costs and improving safety. The company previously focused on demonstrating hybrid thrusters for small satellites in space but now plans to commercialize its research.

"With this round, we will go beyond demonstrating that thruster in space," Hirai said. "We plan to explore a much wider set of use cases across both the space domain and the defense and security domain, and to develop and propose hybrid rocket systems suited to each of them."

The Sapporo-based startup aims to capitalize on Japan's growing investment in its space industry and the easing of restrictions on defense exports. The government is actively working to build a domestic aerospace sector with globally competitive startups. Letara sees this as an opportunity to turn years of academic research and demonstrations into a commercial business, offering hybrid rocket systems for various applications in both civilian and military markets.