RCS - Seraphim Space I.T. - SpaceTech Sector Newsletter September 2023

Seraphim Space Investment TrustAnnouncement

04/10/2023 07:15

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
http://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20231004:nRSD5739Oa&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 5739O  Seraphim Space Investment Trust PLC  04 October 2023

SERAPHIM SPACE INVESTMENT TRUST PLC
(the "Company" or "SSIT")

SpaceTech Sector Newsletter - September 2023

Seraphim Space Investment Trust plc (LSE: SSIT), the world's first listed
SpaceTech investment company, publishes its monthly RNS Reach newsletter to
provide updates, based on publicly available information, on the Company's
portfolio investments, its Manager (Seraphim Space Manager LLP (the "Manager"
or "Seraphim Space")) and the wider SpaceTech market. The following newsletter
covers September 2023.

SSIT News

Edison research on Seraphim Space Investment Trust: High demand for space
tech's disruptive potential

Seraphim Space Investment Trust released a trading update for the year to 30
June 2023, ahead of the release of its annual report in October 2023,
reporting that its top 10 holdings saw their revenues on average (weighted by
portfolio fair value) increasing by 32% year-on-year in the 12 months to June
2023, while bookings went up by 188% over that period. The Company believes
this illustrates the growing interest in the disruptive potential of the
offering of these early-stage businesses across key secular themes, such as
global security and climate change.  link 
(https://investors.seraphim.vc/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Edison-Report-12-09-23.pdf)

SSIT Portfolio Update

US Space Force awards $25.5m contract to Astroscale for refuelling satellite
mission

Astroscale US, a provider of on-orbit services to extend the life of
satellites, has signed an agreement with the US Space Force to co-invest in an
on-orbit refuelling vehicle. Col. Joyce Bulson, project manager at Space
Systems Command, said the agreement includes $25.5 million in government
funding, of which approximately $12 million is to be provided by Astroscale.
The company will deliver in 24 months a "manifest ready" prototype vehicle
capable of refuelling a satellite in orbit, Bulson said in an interview with
SpaceNews. Astroscale, one of SSIT's largest holdings, is headquartered in
Japan. Its US subsidiary is based in Colorado. The company focuses on space
sustainability technologies such as debris removal and on-orbit satellite
services.  link 
(https://spacenews.com/u-s-space-force-and-astroscale-to-co-invest-in-a-refueling-satellite/)

AST SpaceMobile achieves space-based 5G cellular broadband connectivity from
smartphones

AST SpaceMobile is building the first and only space-based cellular broadband
network accessible directly by standard mobile phones. In September, the
company announced another unprecedented leap in telecommunications by
successfully making the first-ever 5G connection for voice and data between an
unmodified smartphone and a satellite in space. This historic achievement was
reached using the BlueWalker 3 test satellite in collaboration with partners
Vodafone, AT&T and Nokia, and further shows promise for filling coverage
gaps in 4G and 5G broadband connectivity around the planet from space.  link 
(https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230919031637/en/AST-SpaceMobile-Achieves-Space-Based-5G-Cellular-Broadband-Connectivity-From-Everyday-Smartphones-Another-Historic-World-First)

Delos Insurance raises $7.3m in seed extension round

Delos Insurance Solutions, which uses wildfire science and satellite imagery
expertise to solve homeowners' wildfire insurance availability issues,
announced a $7.3 million seed extension round. The funding enables the
company's expansion in the California homeowners' insurance market. The seed
extension round was led by IA Capital Group with participation from Blue Bear
Capital, Gallatin Point Capital, SSIT, Avanta Ventures (the corporate venture
arm of CSAA Insurance Group), Red Dog Capital, DNX Ventures, Robert Glanville
and Jonathan Crystal.  link 
(https://www.theinsurer.com/news/wildfire-insurtech-mga-delos-raises-7-3mn-in-seed-extension-round/)

Ubotica Technologies partners with IBM for AI capabilities in space

Space AI leader, Ubotica Technologies, is partnering with IBM to leverage IBM
cloud infrastructure and Watsonx.ai components, intending to simplify the
process for developers to get their applications running on board a satellite.
With a single click, mutual customers will be able to securely deploy their AI
models directly to satellites that use the Ubotica CogniSAT(TM) platform.
These space-borne AI models are then used to generate insights from data in
space. The new approach offers considerable capital and operational
expenditure savings for satellite constellation operators, and increased
autonomy and decision-making capabilities at the edge, with reduced dependence
on ground systems.  link 
(https://www.ibm.com/blog/ubotica-partners-with-ibm-for-one-click-deployment-of-space-ai-applications/)

Spire Global tracking Ukraine's effort to export grain

The Wall Street Journal recently highlighted the role that Spire Maritime's
data plays in highlighting new routes Ukraine is using to ship grain out of
the country. In response to Russia's invasion and the closure of the Black Sea
Grain initiative, Ukraine is working with the US and other countries to
develop other routes along the Danube River for transporting the country's
grain internationally.  link 
(https://spire.com/blog/maritime/tracking-ukraines-efforts-to-export-grain/)

D-Orbit wins ESA Rising Star Award

D-Orbit was announced as the winner of the European Space Agency
(https://www.linkedin.com/company/european-space-agency/) 2023 "Rising Stars"
Award. The initiative aims to list the most promising European space start-ups
and scale-ups in its ecosystem. The selection criteria are based on the
credibility of the company's business plan, the socio-economic impact of the
activity funded by ESA and the alignment with ESA's strategic objectives.
  link 
(https://commercialisation.esa.int/2023/09/esa-announces-the-20-laureates-of-the-2023-rising-stars-award/)

SpaceTech Sector News

NASA's first asteroid sample has landed

After years of anticipation, NASA's OSIRIS-REx, a capsule containing rocks and
dust collected from asteroid Bennu, has landed on earth. It landed at 8:52
a.m. MDT on Sunday 24 September, in a targeted area of the US Department of
Defense's Utah Test and Training Range near Salt Lake City. The mission took 7
years and OSIRIS-REx travelled 3.9 billion miles to Bennu and back. These
rocks will help us understand the origin of organics and water that may have
seeded life on earth.   link 
(https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-s-first-asteroid-sample-has-landed-now-secure-in-clean-room)

Eutelsat completes OneWeb merger

Eutelsat completed its merger with OneWeb, combining LEO and GEO capabilities
to create a multi-orbit connectivity internet powerhouse. The new company will
leverage the reliability and capacity of GEO coverage and OneWeb's low-latency
LEO capabilities. Eutelsat will be able to augment its high-cash flowing, yet
shrinking, TV business with OneWeb's fast-growing satellite internet business.
Pre-merger, Eutelsat's broadcast business made up 62% of sales, but these
declined 8.3% YoY.  link 
(https://payloadspace.com/eutelsat-completes-oneweb-merger/)

Building in zero gravity: The race to create factories in space

NASA has given a $2m grant to scientists who want to see if zero-gravity
conditions can help produce new stem cell and gene therapies. The defence
company Northrop Grumman partnered with a startup that aims to produce
semiconductors in space.  link 
(https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/sep/25/space-manufacturing-zero-gravity)

Media, Podcasts and Conferences

 

Media

·          City Wire: Seraphim Space spies recovery as volatility
levels return to earth.  link 
(https://citywire.com/wealth-manager/news/seraphim-space-spies-recovery-as-volatility-levels-return-to-earth/a2425616)

·         Business Magazine: Seraphim Space Investment Trust hails
geo-diverse space accelerator programme as Africa joins space race.  link 
(https://thebusinessmagazine.co.uk/technology-innovation/seraphim-space-investment-trust-hails-geo-diverse-space-accelerator-programme-as-africa-joins-space-race/)

 

Podcasts: Episodes 8 and 9 of the 'Generation Space Podcast - Portfolio
Spotlight'

·      S2 Episode 8: SSIT portfolio company Taranis' CEO, Opher Flohr:
Taranis is a leading precision agriculture intelligence platform that uses
computer vision, data science and deep learning algorithms to effectively
monitor fields at scale. Farmers lose up to 30-40% of their yield every season
due to crop diseases, insects and weeds. Taranis' mission is to help these
farmers maximise crop yield, improve productivity and adopt sustainable
practices.  link 
(https://seraphim.vc/generation-space/podcast/portfolio-spotlight-opher-flohr-ceo-at-taranisportfolio-spotlight/)

·       S2 Episode 9: SSIT portfolio company D-Orbit's Founder & CEO,
Luca Rossettini: Luca Rossettini is a serial entrepreneur who is passionate
about seeking the profitable and sustainable expansion of humankind in space.
D-Orbit is operating in-space logistics and developing and testing new
technologies to extend the life of satellites in orbit.  link 
(https://seraphim.vc/generation-space/podcast/portfolio-spotlight-luca-rossettini-ceo-founder-d-orbitportfolio-spotlight/)

 

Conferences

·           Seraphim Space CIO, James Bruegger, will be speaking at
the NORDEEP Summit on 11 October 2023 in Helsinki.

·           Seraphim Space CEO, Mark Boggett, will be speaking at
The Economist Space Summit on 11 October 2023 in LA.

·           Seraphim Space CEO, Mark Boggett, will be speaking at
Invest2Scale on 31 October 2023 in Edinburgh.

Find out where to meet and hear from Seraphim Space's team by following its
social media: LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/seraphim-space/) /
Twitter (https://twitter.com/seraphim_space?lang=en) .

Sign up to receive SSIT's monthly newsletter direct to your inbox.  link 
(https://seraphim.us16.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=e0d06c32336837b2b89cf44ae&id=68130aa2bb)

Neither the Company's website nor the content of any website accessible from
hyperlinks in it or in this newsletter (or any other website) is (or is deemed
to be) incorporated into, or forms (or is deemed to form) part of, this
newsletter.

- Ends -

Media Enquiries

 Seraphim Space Manager LLP (via SEC Newgate)
 Mark Boggett, CEO / James Bruegger, CIO / Rob Desborough
 SEC Newgate (Communications advisers)                     seraphim@secnewgate.co.uk (mailto:seraphim@secnewgate.co.uk)
 Emma Kane / Clotilde Gros / George Esmond                 +44 (0) 20 3757 6767
 Deutsche Bank
 Mark Hankinson / Gavin Deane / Neil Coleman               +44 (0) 20 7545 8000
 J.P. Morgan Cazenove
 William Simmonds / Jérémie Birnbaum / Rupert Budge        +44 (0) 20 7742 4000
 Ocorian Administration (UK) Limited                       seraphimteam@ocorian.com (mailto:seraphimteam@ocorian.com)
 Lorna Zimny                                               +44 (0) 28 9078 5880

Notes to Editors

About Seraphim Space Investment Trust plc

Seraphim Space Investment Trust plc (the "Company") is the world's first
listed fund focused on SpaceTech. The Company seeks exposure predominantly to
early and growth stage private financed SpaceTech businesses that have the
potential to dominate globally and that are sector leaders with first mover
advantages in areas such as climate, communications, mobility and cyber
security.

The Company is listed on the Premium Segment of the London Stock Exchange.

Further information is available at: https://investors.seraphim.vc
(https://investors.seraphim.vc) .

About Seraphim Space Manager LLP

Seraphim Space Manager LLP ("Seraphim Space" or the "Manager") is based in the
UK and manages Seraphim Space Investment Trust plc.

Further information is available at www.seraphim.vc (http://www.seraphim.vc) .

About Seraphim Space Camp Accelerator Ltd

Seraphim Space Camp Accelerator Ltd, an affiliate of Seraphim Space Manager
LLP based in the UK, established the Seraphim Space Accelerator in 2018 and
has developed it to become the world-leading VC-led accelerator with a focus
on SpaceTech. The accelerator programme brings in-depth industry expertise to
get Seed and Pre-Series A SpaceTech companies 'investment ready' while
facilitating relationships with some of the world's leading Space corporates
and agencies.

Further information is available at www.seraphim.vc (http://www.seraphim.vc) .

About Generation Space LLC

Generation Space LLC is the US subsidiary of Seraphim Space Manager LLP and is
responsible for its US activities. Generation Space LLC is an affiliate of
Seraphim Space Camp Accelerator Ltd and is responsible for delivery of the US
Generation Space Accelerator.

Further information is available at www.generation.space
(http://www.generation.space) .

This information is provided by Reach, the non-regulatory press release distribution service of RNS, part of the London Stock Exchange. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  NRAUOOVROSURRAA