ExLabs' ACQR Robot to Enter Prototype Phase with $1.9 Million SpaceWERX Funding

Exploration Laboratories (ExLabs) has secured a $1.9 million Tactical Funding Increase (TACFI) from SpaceWERX to advance its technology for autonomously capturing space objects.

This funding will propel ExLabs into the prototype development and testing phase for its Autonomous Capture and Acquisition Robot (ACQR).

The Southern California-based company previously announced a $1.7 million contract from SpaceWERX's Small Business Innovation Research program in 2023. This initial funding focused on the development of autonomous capture and acquisition technology. With the additional $1.9 million investment, split between government and private investors, ExLabs is now poised to transition to prototype development and testing, setting the stage for an orbital test flight of the ACQR platform.

"Facilitates our transition to prototype development and testing of the ACQR platform, paving the way for its orbital test flight," - Matthew Schmidgall, ExLabs CEO and Co-Founder

ACQR, ExLabs' flagship technology, is designed to autonomously capture and acquire space objects. Complementing ACQR is the Space Exploration and Resource Vehicle (SERV), a spacecraft capable of hosting payloads up to 30 metric tons in its fully stacked configuration. Together, ACQR and SERV will enable the capture and control of large objects in space.

"The long-term goal for ExLabs is to provide the world’s largest operational spacecraft to support asteroid retrieval missions for in-situ resource utilization in cis-lunar space...In addition to payload hosting, transportation and delivery, the SERV spacecraft will serve as a large-scale power utility." - Matthew Schmidgall, ExLabs CEO and Co-Founder

Apophis Mission

In addition to its technological advancements, ExLabs is preparing for a significant civil space mission.

The company plans to rendezvous with the asteroid Apophis in 2028, before it approaches Earth. This mission will involve depositing three cubesats in Apophis' orbit, aiming to validate systems and software for future operations focused on capturing and moving near-Earth asteroids into stable orbits for resource acquisition.

Company Leadership and Expertise

ExLabs was founded in 2023 by Matthew Schmidgall, a former managing partner at Rocket Motorsports, and Miguel Pascual, a former senior systems engineer at Boeing.

The team boasts a wealth of expertise, including Tom Cooley, former Air Force Research Laboratory Space Systems chief scientist; Dalibor Djuran, former chief engineer at E-Space; and Keiko Nakamura, who spent nearly 20 years at NASA and served as co-investigator on renowned asteroid missions such as Hayabusa2 and OSIRIS-Rex.

With this substantial financial backing and a team of seasoned professionals, ExLabs is well-positioned to make significant strides in the field of space resources, particularly in autonomous space object capture and asteroid retrieval.