Neuraspace Secures €15.6M to Scale AI-Driven Space Traffic Management
The Portuguese space tech firm will expand orbital monitoring and defense capabilities following a mixed private and public funding round.
Portuguese space technology company Neuraspace has secured €15.6 million in mixed financing to scale its AI-powered space traffic management (STM) and space domain awareness (SDA) capabilities. The investment arrives as orbital congestion increases, making autonomous monitoring a critical requirement for both commercial and military space operations.
The funding round combines private capital from Lince Capital, Explorer Investments, and Armilar Venture Partners with public funding provided by Portugal's Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP/PRRP). Neuraspace will use the capital to expand its proprietary optical sensing infrastructure and grow NeuraspaceDEF, its dual-use defense offering. The company is experiencing rapid commercial scaling, reporting revenue growth of more than 350% over the past year.
The Orbital Challenge
Founded in 2020, Neuraspace operates in an environment where the proliferation of satellites has heightened the risk of collisions and intentional threats, including jamming and spoofing. To mitigate these risks, the company provides a full-stack solution that integrates ground sensors with AI-driven orbit determination and autonomous decision support.
Neuraspace currently monitors more than 600 satellites for a diverse portfolio of institutional and commercial clients, including the European Space Agency, Spire Global, GEOSAT, NanoAvionics, Sidus Space, and U-Space. This operational capacity is supported by proprietary optical telescopes located in Chile and Beja, Portugal, which are capable of detecting objects as small as 10cm in Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
Strategic Defense Integration
Beyond commercial traffic management, the company has pivoted toward sovereign security. Neuraspace has established defense partnerships with NATO and the Portuguese Air Force and was recently selected as a prime contractor by the European Ministry of Defence.
According to Neuraspace CEO Chiara Manfletti, safety and security are no longer separate challenges but are instead "two sides of the same operational problem." This integration is central to the company's growth strategy as it seeks to provide a comprehensive shield for orbital assets.
Industry Implications
This funding round signals a broader shift in the space economy, where space traffic management is transitioning from a government-led function to essential commercial infrastructure. By developing these capabilities within Europe, Neuraspace reduces the continent's reliance on non-European surveillance data, ensuring greater strategic autonomy for European space missions.
Vasco Pereira Coutinho, CEO of Lince Capital, noted that Neuraspace has established itself as one of the most promising space technology firms in Europe. As the number of active satellites continues to climb, the demand for high-precision, AI-driven monitoring is expected to grow.
Future Outlook
Moving forward, the industry will be watching how Neuraspace integrates its expanded sensing network with its defense-grade offerings. While the company has already secured high-level contracts with the European MoD and NATO, the scalability of its autonomous decision support systems will be key to managing the increasingly crowded LEO environment.