Varda Space Industries designs and operates a variety of space infrastructure that could be necessary for the future of an orbital economy. An orbital economy refers to commercial activities, industries, and services that operate in Earth's orbit, ranging from established sectors such as satellite communications to nascent sectors such as space manufacturing.
Varda Space Industries falls into the latter category. It currently builds spacecraft that manufacture products in space that benefit from microgravity and then returns them to Earth.
Varda was founded in January 2021 by Will Bruey and Delian Asparouhov, whose backgrounds included work at SpaceX and Founders Fund. In the near term, Varda is focused on manufacturing pharmaceuticals, which gain unique properties when crystallized in microgravity.
The long-term vision for Varda is to create the infrastructure necessary for a large-scale orbital economy, including everything from individual factories to a commercial industrial park.
Varda's first flight launched in June 2023 and focused on crystallizing a specific medication in space to demonstrate its microgravity pharmaceutical processing capabilities. The mission successfully created a metastable crystalline form of the HIV medication ritonavir that had been difficult to produce on Earth.
Varda has since completed two more successful flights. The microgravity environment in orbit offers unique advantages for creating new drug formulations. With gravity removed from the equation, manufacturers can achieve more uniform particle sizes and purer crystals that can improve the drug's properties.
Varda uses its own autonomous, self-sustaining Pioneer spacecraft. Its reusable capsules are designed to transition from orbit, re-enter the atmosphere, and land on Earth, returning their cargo of manufactured products for ground-based post-processing.
Varda designs and builds its own vehicles, equipment, and materials at its El Segundo, California, facility. Its vehicles have served as platforms for the U.S. Air Force to conduct hypersonic flight testing. The company has also partnered with Rocket Lab (RKLB +1.56%) for its flights and has agreements with NASA and the U.S. Air Force to support its operations.
Here's what you need to know about how to invest in Varda Space Industries and much more.
Is Varda Space Industries publicly traded?
No, Varda Space Industries is not publicly traded. It is a privately held, venture capital-backed company. While the public cannot buy shares on major stock exchanges like the New York Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, accredited investors may be able to purchase Varda shares in secondary markets. The average retail investor can't buy shares of Varda Space Industries right now.
When will Varda Space Industries IPO?
Varda Space Industries does not have a scheduled initial public offering (IPO) date at this time. The company closed a $187 million Series C funding round in July 2025, but there are no public filings or announcements indicating an imminent IPO.
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Key investing steps
If you want to invest in any of the stocks listed above, here's what you need to do.
- Step 1: Open your brokerage account: Log in to your brokerage account where you handle your investments.
- Step 2: Search for the stock: Enter the ticker or company name into the search bar to bring up the stock's trading page.
- Step 3: Decide how many shares to buy: Consider your investment goals and how much of your portfolio you want to allocate to this stock.
- Step 4: Select order type: Choose between a market order to buy at the current price or a limit order to specify the maximum price you're willing to pay.
- Step 5: Submit your order: Confirm the details and submit your buy order.
- Step 6: Review your purchase: Check your portfolio to ensure your order was filled as expected and adjust your investment strategy accordingly.
Is Varda Space Industries profitable?
No, Varda Space Industries is not currently profitable. It is still in a high-growth phase and raising significant capital from investors to fund its operations as well as its expansion into the in-space manufacturing market.
The company is working on generating revenue through hypersonic testing and hopes to eventually generate income from pharmaceutical royalties. However, these revenue streams are still in their early stages of development.
The company may eventually expand into manufacturing other high-value products, such as semiconductors and fiber optic cables, where microgravity can produce higher-quality materials. Varda had raised about $329 million in funding as of 2025.
As a relatively young company, it is sure to reinvest heavily in research and development (R&D) to establish its in-space manufacturing capabilities rather than focus on profitability.
Should I invest in Varda Space Industries?
You can't directly invest in Varda Space Industries as a regular retail investor, but there are publicly traded alternatives to consider. There are some factors to consider before you invest in space stocks, and it's important to evaluate each individual business on its merits, growth potential, and financials and align those factors with your overall risk tolerance level and portfolio goals.
Many pure-play space companies are in the early stages of generating revenue and are highly capital-intensive, so becoming profitable won't be a near-term reality. These businesses are often valued based on future potential rather than current fundamentals, and that can make them susceptible to hype cycles and sharp market corrections.
Many space companies rely on government agencies like NASA and the Department of Defense for a stable revenue stream, too. The industry is highly competitive, with both well-established aerospace and defense giants and agile new entrants fighting for market share.
As always, whether you're investing in space stocks or other market sectors, it's important to diversify your holdings and focus on quality businesses that you intend to hold for the long haul.
ETFs with exposure to Varda Space Industries
If you want to take a basket approach to space stocks, there are plenty of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to consider. Even though Varda Space Industries isn't publicly traded, there are plenty of other public space companies included in these funds.
You can become instantly diversified by investing in a space-focused ETF, without having to worry about being overly concentrated in a specific stock. Several ETFs to consider include the Procure Space ETF (UFO +1.53%), the ARK Space Exploration & Innovation ETF (ARKX +1.68%), and the SPDR S&P Kensho Final Frontiers ETF (ROKT +0.92%).
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The bottom line on Varda Space Industries
Varda Space Industries could be a high-risk, high-reward bet on the commercial viability of microgravity manufacturing if it goes public. While the company has attracted significant funding, it still contends with considerable execution risks, intense regulatory scrutiny, and a fledgling market.
It's also worth noting that the demand for space-manufactured goods, particularly in pharmaceuticals, has not yet been proven at a commercial scale. Varda will need to demonstrate that the benefits of microgravity drugs -- such as increased efficacy -- are significant enough to justify their high production costs. Larger pharmaceutical companies are also exploring in-space manufacturing through research partnerships with NASA.
As a private company, Varda is not directly accessible to the public right now. Retail investors will have to wait for a potential IPO, acquisition, or other exit event, and secondary market investments are reserved for accredited investors.
For now, investing in other publicly traded players could be an intriguing opportunity to take even a small position in companies that will affect the future trajectory of the space economy.
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