AstroForge
AstroForge is a U.S.-based deep space mining company that designs low-cost interplanetary spacecraft to extract platinum group metals from metallic near-Earth asteroids, targeting automotive, clean energy, and electronics buyers while offering payload services on its DeepSpace Bus platform.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2022
- HeadquartersHuntington Beach, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What AstroForge does
AstroForge is a privately-held U.S. deep space mining company headquartered in Seal Beach, California, founded in 2022. The company designs, builds, and operates low-cost interplanetary spacecraft with the stated mission of extracting platinum group metals (PGMs) from metallic near-Earth asteroids and selling them to terrestrial industrial buyers. Its core technology is the "DeepSpace Bus," a modular 200kg spacecraft platform supporting up to 50kg payloads, featuring Hall-effect electric propulsion with 5 km/s delta-V capability, autonomous navigation enabling week-plus operations without ground contact, omnidirectional antennas, and 2kW solar power generation from onboard arrays. The company has flown a progressive sequence of demonstration missions: Brokkr-1 (April 2023, refinery technology validation in low Earth orbit), Odin (February 2025, first commercial deep space attempt to image asteroid 2022 OB5), and DeepSpace-2 (planned Q4 2026, asteroid rendezvous and landing attempt).
The company's business model has two intended revenue streams. The primary stream targets the global PGM market (projected at $30.41 billion) by selling space-mined platinum, palladium, and rhodium to automotive, clean energy, and electronics buyers at projected margins of approximately 85%, versus roughly 7% for terrestrial mining. The secondary stream involves selling payload capacity on the DeepSpace Bus to research institutions, government agencies, and commercial customers seeking affordable beyond-LEO access. To date the company has raised over $55 million in venture funding led by Nova Threshold (Series A, August 2024), with cost economics driven by rideshare launch arrangements through NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services program at roughly $3.5 million per mission versus $80 million or more for conventional deep space missions.
AstroForge serves a defined set of target end markets: automotive manufacturers requiring PGMs for catalytic converters and fuel cell technologies, clean energy companies building hydrogen and fuel cell infrastructure, semiconductor and electronics manufacturers facing critical mineral supply constraints, and space research institutions needing low-cost deep space access. The company has established core strategic partnerships including rideshare arrangements with Intuitive Machines (IM-2 and IM-3 missions) and SpaceX Falcon 9, propulsion requalification with Dawn Aerospace, ground station aggregation through KSAT, and an advisory bench that includes the Principal Investigator of NASA's Psyche mission and former senior US Space Force and Air Force leadership. The company holds the first-ever FCC commercial deep space spectrum license.
AstroForge firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- AstroForge
- Legal name
- Gaingels AstroForge LLC
- Website
- https://astroforge.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2022
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- AstroForge is a U.S.-based deep space mining company that designs low-cost interplanetary spacecraft to extract platinum group metals from metallic near-Earth asteroids, targeting automotive, clean energy, and electronics buyers while offering payload services on its DeepSpace Bus platform.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
AstroForge industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Space Mining
- NAICS
- Guided Missile and Space Vehicle Manufacturing (336414), Guided Missile and Space Vehicle Propulsion Unit and Propulsion Unit Parts Manufacturing (336415), Other Guided Missile and Space Vehicle Parts and Auxiliary Equipment Manufacturing (336419)
- SIC
- Guided Missiles & Space Vehicles & Parts (3760)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Spacecraft & Satellites (Civil/Commercial) (IMABACAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Space Payloads & Instruments (Sensors, Comms, EO/IR) (IMABACAD), Space Power Systems (Solar Arrays, Batteries, EPS) (IMABACAH), Spacecraft Propulsion (In-Space) & Thrusters (IMABACAE), Guidance, Navigation & Control (GNC) for Space Systems (IMABACAG)
Keywords
Where AstroForge is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Huntington Beach
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
AstroForge business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Asteroid Resource Extraction and Sale: AstroForge's primary revenue stream involves mining platinum group metals (PGMs) from asteroids and selling them to terrestrial industries. The company targets the $30.41 billion global PGM market by extracting metals from metal-rich near-Earth asteroids at significantly lower cost than terrestrial mining.
- Deep Space Payload Services: The company offers commercial payload delivery services using its DeepSpace bus to deep space destinations. This generates revenue by selling payload capacity to researchers, commercial companies, and government agencies seeking affordable access to deep space.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | DeepSpace Bus Payload Delivery |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
AstroForge product offering
Product offeringCore offering
AstroForge is a deep-space asteroid mining company that designs, builds, and operates proprietary spacecraft to extract platinum group metals (PGMs) from metallic near-Earth asteroids and sell them to terrestrial industries. The company also commercializes payload capacity on its modular DeepSpace bus for third-party deep space missions. Primary offerings include the Odin and DeepSpace-2 asteroid characterization and mining spacecraft, plus the DeepSpace Bus payload platform.
Product overview
AstroForge is a deep-space mining company offering a vertically-integrated asteroid mining solution. The core offering consists of proprietary spacecraft (Odin, DeepSpace-2) that progressively demonstrate capabilities to reach, characterize, and eventually extract platinum group metals from metallic near-Earth asteroids. The DeepSpace Bus serves as a modular commercial payload platform that supports third-party payloads on deep space missions. The company also operates the Roid Rage podcast as an educational content channel. Brokkr-1 validated refinery technology in LEO, Odin demonstrated deep space navigation and asteroid imaging, and DeepSpace-2 aims to achieve the first commercial asteroid landing and surface analysis.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Roid Rage: Podcast by AstroForge on all things related to deep space mining - specifically, asteroid mining. Hosted by Jack Beyer and Matt Gialich.
Products and services
- DeepSpace Bus — Deep Space Payload Services A modular 200kg spacecraft platform offering low-cost, high-efficiency deep space payload delivery to commercial companies, space agencies, and research institutions. Supports up to 50kg of customer payload, up to 2-year autonomous mission life, electric or hybrid propulsion, 2 kW solar power generation, and S-band communications to 20 million km from Earth. Marketed as a rideshare opportunity for deep space science missions, asteroid characterization, and planetary defense research.
- Brokkr-1 Refinery Demonstration Mission First refinery demonstration mission validating AstroForge's ability to extract platinum from asteroid simulant material in space. Established the company's flight engineering credentials and proved the proprietary space-based refinery approach ahead of subsequent deep space mining missions.
- Odin Spacecraft First deep space mission spacecraft by AstroForge and the first privately constructed spacecraft to attempt operations this far into deep space. A 105kg flyby and imaging platform equipped with multispectral cameras for asteroid surface analysis, targeting near-Earth metallic asteroid 2022 OB5 to validate asteroid imaging capability and refine target selection for subsequent mining missions.
- DeepSpace-2 Spacecraft Second deep space mission spacecraft and the company's flagship asteroid mining platform. A 200kg modular interplanetary spacecraft designed to travel up to 20 million kilometers, rendezvous with and land on a near-Earth metallic asteroid, capture high-resolution imagery, and attempt the first private landing outside Earth's gravity well. Uses Hall-effect thrusters (5 km/s delta-V), 2 kW solar power, and autonomous navigation.
Quantifiable outcome
- Asteroid mining achieves ~85% profit margins vs ~7% for terrestrial PGM mining
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use AstroForge
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
AstroForge technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature6 records
AstroForge partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Intuitive MachinescoreAstroForge launched Odin as a rideshare payload on Intuitive Machines' IM-2 lunar mission, and DeepSpace-2 will launch on the IM-3 mission. This partnership enables affordable deep space access through shared launch costs.
- FCC (Federal Communications Commission)coreThe FCC granted AstroForge the first-ever commercial deep space spectrum license, authorizing operation of the Odin spacecraft beyond 2 million kilometers from Earth under Part 5 experimental licensing.
- Dawn AerospacecorePartnership with Dawn Aerospace for propulsion system repair and requalification for the Odin spacecraft, supporting the rapid development timeline.
- KSAT (Kongsberg Satellite Services)coreGround station aggregation partner providing access to global network of deep space communication dishes for mission tracking and data transmission.
- Dr. Lindy Elkins-TantonminorPrincipal Investigator for NASA's Psyche mission and leading expert in metal asteroids, serving as strategic advisor with nearly 150 peer-reviewed publications.
- Justin ChandlerminorVP of Government Relations and Strategic Partnerships at ThinkOrbital, former Colonel and Deputy Division Chief for US Department of the Air Force, serving as advisor.
- Kimberly CriderminorFormer CTIO of US Space Force and Major General/Chief Data Officer of US Air Force, founding partner of Elara Nova space consultancy, serving as advisor.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
AstroForge competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks4 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
AstroForge social profiles
Digital presenceAstroForge financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
AstroForge leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
AstroForge funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds7 records
Investors22 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
AstroForge M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about AstroForge
What does AstroForge do?
AstroForge is a deep-space asteroid mining company that designs, builds, and operates proprietary spacecraft to extract platinum group metals (PGMs) from metallic near-Earth asteroids and sell them to terrestrial industries. The company also commercializes payload capacity on its modular DeepSpace bus for third-party deep space missions. Primary offerings include the Odin and DeepSpace-2 asteroid characterization and mining spacecraft, plus the DeepSpace Bus payload platform.
Is AstroForge a public or private company?
AstroForge is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was AstroForge founded?
AstroForge was founded in 2022. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is AstroForge based?
AstroForge is headquartered in Huntington Beach, United States, in the North America region.
How does AstroForge make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Asteroid Resource Extraction and Sale is the primary driver. The others are deep Space Payload Services.
Does AstroForge have an API?
No public API is recorded for AstroForge.
What industry is AstroForge in?
AstroForge's product category is Space Mining. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMABACAB, Spacecraft & Satellites (Civil/Commercial), with a secondary code of IMABACAD, Space Payloads & Instruments (Sensors, Comms, EO/IR). Its NAICS code is 336414 and its SIC code is 3760.