Rocket Lab to Become Publicly Traded Commercial Orbital Launch Company

Since the first satellite was launched into orbit in 1958, space has been the domain of wealthy governments and multi­na­tional contractors that could afford the multi-billion dollar cost of every mission. Rocket Lab changes that math, using advances in computation and science – what we call Deep Tech – to reduce capital require­ments, broaden access to space and bring us new insight into our planet. Rocket Lab has made building complex rockets a repeatable, industrial-scale process and without it, companies like Planet and Capella Space — both part of the DCVC portfolio — wouldn’t be able to easily and consis­tently deliver unprece­dented insight into our planet to private citizens, small governments and private researchers, as well as the G8 governments.

“DCVC’s partnership over the past four years has been invaluable,” said Peter Beck, CEO and founder, Rocket Lab. ​“Whether providing a technical sounding board or a critical eye on the business, Matt and Chris have supported us at every turn. We’re happy to have the DCVC team alongside us as we take this next step.”

Working closely with Peter and the whole Rocket Lab team over the past few years, we’ve been fortunate to be able to play a role in making space more accessible. From increasing launch frequency to developing new satellites, working toward making Electron a reusable rocket and teaming with NASA for a mission to the moon, Rocket Lab has repeatedly proven that lower cost, reliable space flight is not only possible, it’s a reality. Today’s announce­ment is a testament to that hard work, and we’re happy to see another valuable DCVC company that improves the state of the world receive public market funding to continue is mission.

Rocket Lab is the fourth DCVC company to seek the public markets in the past three months. Upon the successful completion of this deal, it will join DCVC Bio company AbCellera, which debuted on Nasdaq in December, as well as Desktop Metal and Lucira Health. While funda­men­tally different, these companies share a Deep Tech foundation which we believe is crucial to their success. Deep Tech enables these companies to do things others can’t or won’t, and to do them faster, for less capital, with better economics for the constituen­cies they serve. For AbCellera, it means using sophis­ti­cated AI and advanced science to create therapeutic antibody treatments for diseases quickly – just 100 days in the case of COVID-19. And for Rocket Lab, it means leveraging new tech­nolo­gies to create cost-effective and reliable vehicles that open up a new ecosystem in space.

Deep Tech companies are often over­shad­owed by consumer investments with easy-to-understand business models and staggering valuations. But unlike the latest scooter or chat application, these companies have a substantive impact on our society, whether it is discovering new drugs to treat diseases, making physical security smarter, creating better and more planet-friendly materials or opening up space for essential discoveries on our planet and beyond. That’s why we at DCVC are so committed to supporting these companies as they tackle challenges across every industry that many have long thought unsolvable, and why we’re so invested in their success.

Congrat­u­la­tions to the Rocket Lab team on this great milestone – we’re so excited to see what the future holds!