South Korean Rocket Startup Unastella Raises $24M Series B for Small Satellite Launches

Seoul-based rocket startup Unastella closed a $24 million Series B round, bringing its total funding to $44 million, the company said June 1, 2026. The financing, led by Altos Ventures with participation from Korea Development Bank, Strong Ventures, and Hana Ventures, funds the firm’s push into the small-satellite launch market. Unastella launched its first test vehicle, UNA EXPRESS-I, from South Korean soil in May 2025, using a kerosene–liquid oxygen engine with an electric motor pump—a simpler, cheaper alternative to traditional turbo pumps. The company handles all design, manufacturing, and operations in-house. Its next major milestone is the UNA EXPRESS-II suborbital flight, targeted for late 2026, which CEO Jae Park said would unlock partnerships with Korean aerospace and defense firms. Unastella enters a crowded Asian launch arena, with Chinese startups and Japan’s H3 rocket already active. The global space launch market, valued at $15 billion in 2023, is projected to reach $41 billion by 2030, per Grand View Research. South Korea’s space agency KASA has committed $266 million to launch infrastructure, betting on private-sector growth. No domestic commercial orbital launch has yet occurred.