Albedo
Very low Earth orbit satellite imagery at aerial resolution for defense and commercial use.
Albedo builds and sells very low Earth orbit (VLEO) satellite buses — branded Vicinity — to other payload operators, after exiting its original commercial satellite-imagery business in October 2025. That pivot followed Clarity-1, Albedo's first satellite (launched 2025, providing 10-centimeter visible and 2-meter thermal infrared imagery), outperforming its design drag coefficient by 12%, which the company said proved the bus platform itself was the more valuable, scalable asset; Clarity-1 later lost contact after roughly 9 months in orbit. Albedo's government customers have included the US Air Force Research Laboratory and the National Reconnaissance Office, and its imagery was distributed internationally through a partnership with European Space Imaging. The company is backed by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Initialized Capital, Y Combinator, and Booz Allen Ventures, having raised $197M through a March 2025 Series B; a further Series B extension at a $285M valuation was reported as in progress in April 2025.
Overview
- Headquarters
- Broomfield, CO
- Founded
- 2020
- Employees
- 100
- Total funding
- $197M
- Valuation
- $285M (Series B raising)
- Stage
- Series B
- Status
- active
- Domains
- Very low Earth orbit, Satellite imagery, Defense intelligence
- X / Twitter
- x.com/Albedo
- Website
- albedo.com
Founders3
Investors3
- FundY CombinatorTop startup accelerator actively backing defense technology companies.
- FundShield CapitalEarly-stage defense and national security venture capital firm.
- FundGiant Step CapitalChicago-based deep-tech/hard-tech fund investing in aerospace, space, robotics, energy, advanced materials, and biotech.
Cap table8
Approximate ownership by holder. Indexed holders link to their records.
Raised per round
Percentages marked ~ are not disclosed. Some are a generic VC-pattern model (founders/team weighted heaviest, option pool lightest, other holders evenly) sized to whatever's left undisclosed — a standard industry shape, not this company's actual cap table.
| Holder | Instrument | Ownership |
|---|---|---|
Founders & team | Common | ~37.5% |
Other investors | Preferred / Common | ~25.0% |
Series B investorsNew | Preferred (Series B) | ~25.0% |
Employee option pool | Options | ~12.5% |
Contracts2
Programs0
No linked records yet.
Frequently asked
- What does Albedo do?
- Albedo builds and sells very low Earth orbit (VLEO) satellite buses — branded Vicinity — to other payload operators, after exiting its original commercial satellite-imagery business in October 2025. That pivot followed Clarity-1, Albedo's first satellite (launched 2025, providing 10-centimeter visible and 2-meter thermal infrared imagery), outperforming its design drag coefficient by 12%, which the company said proved the bus platform itself was the more valuable, scalable asset; Clarity-1 later lost contact after roughly 9 months in orbit. Albedo's government customers have included the US Air Force Research Laboratory and the National Reconnaissance Office, and its imagery was distributed internationally through a partnership with European Space Imaging. The company is backed by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Initialized Capital, Y Combinator, and Booz Allen Ventures, having raised $197M through a March 2025 Series B; a further Series B extension at a $285M valuation was reported as in progress in April 2025.
- Where is Albedo headquartered?
- Albedo is headquartered in Broomfield, CO and was founded in 2020.
- How much funding has Albedo raised?
- Albedo has raised $197M in disclosed funding, at a most recent valuation of $285M (Series B raising).
- What does Albedo specialize in?
- Albedo works across Very low Earth orbit, Satellite imagery, Defense intelligence.
- Does Albedo hold government contracts?
- Defense Tech Atlas links Albedo to 2 government contracts.
Sources & citations5
5 sources behind every claim
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