Argotec raises €50M from NUO Space to lift small-satellite output from 52 to 80 a year
Italian small-satellite maker Argotec closed a €50M (about $55.8M) round with NUO Space to raise annual production capacity from 52 to 80 satellites and grow its US sites.
Italian small-satellite manufacturer Argotec has closed a €50 million (about $55.8 million) funding round subscribed by NUO Space, the space vehicle of Milan investment holding NUO. The deal was announced on 29 October 2026 in an Argotec press release and reported by ANSA and Payload.
What happened
- The round: €50 million from NUO Space (confirmed, company). NUO, founded in 2016 and led by Tommaso Paoli, is backed by Italian and international entrepreneurial families, ANSA reports. Teleborsa notes NUO was an early investor in Bending Spoons.
- Capacity: Argotec says it can already build 52 satellites a year and aims for 80 (confirmed, company). It builds small satellites up to 350 kg for civil, science and security missions.
- Use of funds: More factory capacity, a bigger US presence, more onboard computing and AI, and new services built on satellite data. In the US, Argotec plans to scale its Florida facility, which opened this year, and grow its telecom and RF team in California (reported, Payload and Teleborsa).
- Heritage and pipeline: Founded in 2008, Argotec built LICIACube, the cubesat that flew with NASA's DART asteroid-impact mission (pictured), and ArgoMoon on Artemis I. Payload lists its upcoming work as Italy's Hawk for Earth Observation (HEO) imaging constellation, ESA's HENON space-weather mission and the JAXA–ISRO LUPEX lunar water mission.
- More to come: Founder and CEO David Avino called this "only the first step" and said Argotec is already working toward "a significantly larger follow-on round" (quoted by Payload).
Why it matters for space investors
Argotec calls this its first round and says a much larger one is coming. A European smallsat maker expanding in Florida and California will compete for US government and commercial buses with listed names such as Rocket Lab and Redwire. It also fits Europe's recent push to build more satellites at home, after ESA ordered four more Galileo G2 satellites. Argotec is private, so there is no direct way to invest, but a larger follow-on round would give a valuation reference for European smallsat makers. See also our launch calendar.
Not financial advice.
Sources
- Argotec: Argotec closes €50M funding round with NUO to accelerate global expansion and industrial growth (29 Oct 2026)
- Payload: Argotec raises €50M to scale small sat manufacturing (29 Oct 2026)
- ANSA: Argotec chiude round da 50 milioni con Nuo e punta su internazionalizzazione (29 Oct 2026)
- Teleborsa via Borsa Italiana: Argotec, round da 50 milioni di euro con Nuo (29 Oct 2026)
