Venus Aerospace Raises $91 Million to Scale Rotating Detonation Engine Toward Production

Venus Aerospace, a Houston-based propulsion startup, said July 8 it raised $91 million in a Series B round to expand development and production of its rotating detonation rocket engine technology. The company aims to move the engine from flight testing toward operational deployment across a range of hypersonic and space applications.

The financing was led by Houston-based venture capital firm Mercury Fund, with participation from Lockheed Martin Ventures, MESH, PEAK6, Draper Associates, Starboard Star Venture Capital, Green Sands Equity and other new and existing strategic and institutional investors. The new capital will fund engine development and manufacturing as Venus seeks to scale production of its rotating detonation rocket engine, or RDRE.

An RDRE generates thrust using a continuously rotating detonation wave rather than conventional combustion, a design that could improve engine efficiency and performance for applications ranging from hypersonic vehicles to space transportation. Venus said its engine is built from 3D-printed components and standard materials and is designed for domestic manufacturing. The reusable, throttleable engine is intended for missions including munitions, space launch vehicles, orbital transfer vehicles and lunar landers, according to the company.

The funding follows a series of milestones for the startup. Venus recently appointed former NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy to its board of directors. In May, the company completed what it said was the first U.S. flight test of a 2,000-pound-thrust rotating detonation rocket engine, launching the engine aboard a small rocket from Spaceport America in New Mexico.

Venus has attracted backing from defense and aerospace investors as the Pentagon and industry pursue next-generation propulsion technologies for hypersonic weapons. Lockheed Martin Ventures, the venture investment arm of Lockheed Martin, announced a strategic investment in Venus last year. Founded in 2020, Venus Aerospace was also among five companies selected by the Texas Space Commission for state support, receiving $3.9 million to build a rocket engine test facility in Houston.

The company said the new financing will support scaling production from flight testing toward operational deployment, an approach aimed at serving multiple sectors beyond launch vehicles alone.

Venus will next apply the funding to engine development and manufacturing as it works to bring the RDRE design into production. The company has not announced further test flights or deployment dates.