Reflect Orbital just closed a $20 million Series A. Lux Capital is leading the charge, with Sequoia Capital and Starship Ventures doubling down. But this isn’t just another round with logos and champagne. This is the kind of raise that reminds you what the future smells like, burnt ozone, hot metal, and the unmistakable spark of possibility.
Let’s talk about what they’re really building. Reflect Orbital isn’t selling satellites. They’re selling sunlight. On demand. At night. From space. Take a beat with that. While the world sleeps, these guys are plotting to flip the global energy equation by reflecting sunlight down to Earth after dark, enabling solar farms to do the unthinkable, produce energy under the stars.
Founded in 2021 by Ben Nowack (ex-Zipline) and Tristan Semmelhack (dropped Stanford like a mixtape that couldn’t wait), Reflect Orbital launched with a mirror and a dream. Literally. They kicked things off with a hot-air balloon prototype, reflecting light over the California desert. Proof of concept? Locked. Hype? Nuclear. Their concept video went viral, pulling 55 million eyeballs and over 260,000 sunlight-on-demand applications from 157 countries. That’s not buzz, that’s a global craving.
Now headquartered in Hawthorne, CA, right down the street from SpaceX (because why not park next to the other rocket kids), Reflect Orbital is stacking a team that includes Zay Rosen (Chief of Staff), Ally Stone (DeGunther) (VP Strategy), Emily Bilbao (VP Policy), and Chief Engineer Charlie Garcia. Every one of them is dialed in on the same mission, launch the world’s first commercial constellation of sunlight-reflecting satellites.
The play? Massive, tensioned thin-film mirrors in low Earth orbit. The satellites lock onto targets with surgical precision, beaming sunlight across areas up to 3 miles wide, no infrastructure change needed on the ground. This isn’t theory. It’s tech that scales. Starting with 10x10 meter test units, the real game begins with 50x50 meter satellites. Thousands of them.
They’re not just lighting up soccer fields. Think solar resilience for power grids, emergency light for disaster zones, extended work hours for agriculture and industry, even tactical illumination for defense. The market? Multi-trillion-dollar big. The timing? Perfect. Launch costs are dropping. Solar demand is peaking. And darkness? Well, that’s just another problem about to get solved.
Congrats to Ben Nowack and Tristan Semmelhack for leading the charge, and to Lux Capital, Sequoia, and Starship Ventures for backing a vision that’s half sci-fi, half infrastructure, and 100% needed.
Let’s connect and keep the momentum going across the tech ecosystem. Whether you’re a founder shaping the future, a leader driving change, a VC backing bold ideas, or an investor spotting the next big thing—together, we’re pushing boundaries. Proud to be building the future with you.
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Thank you, Vention. Without your support, none of this would be possible.