Apex

Overview

Apex Space, founded in 2022, is a cutting-edge satellite manufacturing company based in Los Angeles, California. The company specializes in creating standardized, high-rate configurable satellite bus platforms, which cater to a wide range of commercial and government space missions. Under the leadership of founders Ian Cinnamon and Maximilian Benassi, Apex has quickly made a name for itself in the aerospace industry, significantly lowering the costs and lead times associated with satellite manufacturing. As of September 2025, Apex Space has successfully raised over $495 million in various funding rounds, which has greatly accelerated its growth and capabilities.

Recent Developments

September 2025: Apex Space recently completed a $200 million Series D funding round led by Interlagos, bringing its valuation above $1 billion and establishing it as a 'unicorn.' This capital injection aims to double the production capacity at its Los Angeles facilities and speed up production timelines by 50%.
April 2025: Apex Space raised another $200 million in a Series C funding round. The funding was used to further the company's vertical integration strategy and increase the in-house production of subsystems and components. Notable backers in this round were Andreessen Horowitz and Point72 Ventures.
February 2025: Received a substantial $45.9 million contract from the U.S. Space Force to deliver an unspecified number of satellites by 2032. The contract underscores Apex's growing influence and capability to serve complex defense needs.
March 2024: Apex's first satellite, Aries SN1, was launched as part of SpaceX's Transporter-10 mission. The SN1 was a test for the company's rapid development and manufacturing processes, completing a clean-sheet design to launch in under 12 months.
Acquisition: The company acquired Hall Effect thruster technology from Phase Four, enabling them to better integrate satellite propulsion systems in-house.

Attribute	Information
Founding Date	2022
Headquarters	Los Angeles, California, USA
Founders	Ian Cinnamon, Maximilian Benassi
Revenue	Not publicly disclosed
Profits	Not publicly disclosed
Key Investors	Interlagos, Andreessen Horowitz, Point72 Ventures, 8VC
Industry	Aerospace, Satellite Manufacturing
Number of Employees	Approximately 300

Early History

Apex Space was born out of a vision to address the bottleneck in the satellite industry, primarily delays and high costs associated with bespoke spacecraft manufacturing. Ian Cinnamon, who previously founded the AI platform Synapse, and Maximilian Benassi, a seasoned engineering leader from aerospace stalwarts like SpaceX, joined forces in 2022. They established Apex to deliver more accessible and quicker-to-deploy satellite solutions. By emphasizing a productized approach, the company aimed to shift the focus of satellite developers from creating custom satellite buses to advancing space-born applications and services, thereby reducing costs and time-to-launch for their clients.

Company Profile and Achievements

Apex's business model revolves around providing 'off-the-shelf' satellite bus platforms that clients can customize according to their specific mission needs. Their product suite includes the Nova, Aries, and Comet platforms, each designed for different kinds of missions from Low Earth Orbit to geostationary applications.

2024: Launched its first satellite, Aries SN1, which marked the company's capability to rapidly produce space-ready platforms in under a year.
Technological Integration: Developed software integration capabilities to allow spacecraft systems to be more responsive and resilient. Their in-house technologies focus on enhancing satellite propulsion, power management, and onboard processing.
Product Standards: By emphasizing standardization, Apex has established a reputation for reliable and cost-effective satellite buses that support a variety of payloads and communication standards.

Current Operations and Market Position

As of 2025, Apex is aggressively expanding its production capacity to meet growing market demand, estimated at multiple satellite buses per month from their two Los Angeles-based factories. They maintain a robust client base that spans government entities like the U.S. Space Force and commercial enterprises looking to deploy satellite constellations for earth observation, telecommunications, and scientific research.

Conclusion

Apex Space stands at the forefront of a new era in satellite manufacturing, pioneering a shift toward mass-produced, customizable satellite buses that offer unprecedented savings in cost and time. Its trajectory shows significant growth potential, heavily backed by leading venture capitalists and driven by rising defense and commercial satellite demands. As such, Apex is poised to influence the satellite manufacturing sector significantly, providing the tools necessary for rapid satellite deployment in the ever-expanding space economy.