Hanwha Asset Management invests in Impulse Space Series D1 via four-institution fund
In short
Hanwha Asset Management said on 22 October that it set up a project fund backed by four domestic institutions and invested in the Series D1 round of US space company Impulse Space. It has invested since Series B, and this is its fourth consecutive round.
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Hanwha Asset Management said on 22 October that it had set up a project fund financed by four domestic institutions and invested in the Series D1 round of US space company Impulse Space. Seoul Economic Daily and Yonhap reported that several institutions expressed willingness to invest in the fund and that four were selected. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Hanwha has invested in Impulse Space since Series B, and the Series D1 round is its fourth consecutive one. Asia Economy and Seoul Economic Daily added that it is the only Asian investor to have done so since Series B. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Impulse Space was founded in 2021 by Tom Mueller, a SpaceX founding member who served as its chief technology officer. Asia Economy and Seoul Economic Daily said he held that post for more than 10 years and led development of the Merlin engine. The company develops orbital transfer vehicles that move satellites and cargo to their target orbit after a launch vehicle has placed them in orbit. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
According to Asia Economy and Seoul Economic Daily, Impulse Space has completed three missions with its low-Earth-orbit vehicle Mira and is developing Helios, a vehicle for direct insertion into geostationary orbit. They said it is working with US defence company Anduril on the Golden Dome next-generation missile defence programme. In June it raised about $500 million, taking cumulative funding above $1 billion, and Founders Fund is a major shareholder, the two outlets reported. Yonhap attributed the funding figures to Hanwha. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Asia Economy said the investment lets Hanwha share co-investment opportunities in overseas deep-tech companies with domestic institutions. Seoul Economic Daily said Hanwha plans to expand such opportunities and to keep running its network programme 'Hanwha VC Connect'. Both outlets listed Hanwha's other direct investments, including SpaceX, ICEYE, Varda Space, OpenAI, Mistral AI, Groq, Physical Intelligence, Skild AI, Shield AI and HavocAI. [ 1 , 2 ]
Hanwha Asset Management chief executive Lim Dong-jun (임동준) said: "The investment relationships we built early with global deep-tech companies made this investment possible." He said the firm would use its US AI and deep-tech investment experience and network to offer clients forward-looking financial products. Yonhap attributed the same remarks to the asset manager. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Why it matters
The documents present the deal as a way for Korean institutions to take part in a US space company through a fund Hanwha assembled. They give no investment amount, so the size of the deal is not known from this coverage.
Key facts
- Hanwha Asset Management said it formed a project fund financed by four domestic institutions and invested in Impulse Space's Series D1 round. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Hanwha has invested in Impulse Space since Series B; the Series D1 round is its fourth in a row. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Several institutions said they were willing to invest in the fund, and four were selected. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Impulse Space was founded in 2021 by Tom Mueller, a SpaceX founding member and its chief technology officer, and develops orbital transfer vehicles. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Impulse Space raised about $500 million in June, bringing its total funding above $1 billion. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Asia Economy and Seoul Economic Daily reported that Hanwha is the only Asian investor to have taken part since Series B. [ 1 , 2 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Hanwha Asset Management announced on 22 October that a project fund with four domestic institutions invested in Impulse Space's Series D1 round. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- This is Hanwha's fourth consecutive round in Impulse Space, starting from Series B. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Impulse Space raised about $500 million in June, and its cumulative funding exceeds $1 billion. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Still unclear
- The size of the Series D1 round and the amount Hanwha and the fund invested are not stated. None of the three documents gives an investment amount.
- The four institutions that put money into the fund are not named. The documents say only that four domestic institutions were selected from those that expressed interest.
- Whether Hanwha is the only Asian investor to have taken part since Series B. Only Asia Economy and Seoul Economic Daily state this; Yonhap does not.