The orbital highways above Earth are becoming dangerously congested. With tens of thousands of operational satellites and millions of pieces of untracked debris, the risk of catastrophic collisions is escalating, threatening critical infrastructure and future space endeavors. Addressing this urgent challenge, Look Up, a pioneering Toulouse-based SpaceTech startup, has announced a significant €50 million Series A funding round to bolster its global radar network and advanced space traffic management services.
The Series A round, one of the largest in European SpaceTech over the past decade, comprises a strategic mix of €24 million in equity, alongside €15 million in non-dilutive public grants from the European Union, and additional debt financing from various banking institutions.
Michel Friedling, Co-founder of Look Up, articulated the company’s ambitious vision: “Look Up stands out with a holistic vision and a unique strategy. Our goal is to become a global player in space safety and operations. This funding will enable us to continue deploying our radar network worldwide and enhance our digital solutions to address the escalating challenge of an increasingly congested and unstable orbital environment.”
The core problem Look Up addresses is the critical lack of comprehensive, real-time space situational awareness (SSA) for the burgeoning low-Earth orbit (LEO) environment. Current tracking capabilities, largely dominated by the United States, struggle to monitor the vast number of objects, especially those smaller than 10 centimeters, which can still cause catastrophic damage. Look Up’s solution centers on its proprietary global radar network, SORASYS. This network is designed to provide continuous, high-precision detection and tracking of everything from operational satellites to centimetre-scale debris, offering superior revisit rates compared to traditional optical or single-site radar systems. Beyond raw data collection, Look Up’s full-stack approach integrates the SYNAPSE platform, an advanced analytics engine that processes SORASYS data in real-time to generate actionable insights for space traffic management. This platform enables precise orbit determination, collision risk assessment, and optimized maneuver planning. Furthermore, the company is developing ATLAS2, an EU-backed program focused on automated low-Earth orbit safety, and is validating a "Space-Operations-as-a-Service" model, aiming to provide comprehensive orbital safety solutions to both public and private operators.
Founded in 2022 by Michel Friedling, former head of the French Space Command, and Juan Carlos Dolado Perez, ex-Chief of Space Surveillance at CNES, Look Up has rapidly scaled its operations. The company, which launched just three years ago, already operates a high-precision radar in France and plans to install two more in French Polynesia soon. With over 60 employees as of June 2025, the team projects growth to 100 by year’s end, reflecting its aggressive expansion strategy. The fresh capital will be strategically deployed to accelerate the global deployment of new SORASYS radar units, establish a dedicated space operations centre, and significantly boost the company’s international market penetration. A key milestone will be an in-orbit demonstration to validate their "Space-Operations-as-a-Service" model, proving its efficacy in a live operational environment.
While the space surveillance and traffic management sector is rapidly evolving, Look Up operates within a landscape that includes both governmental and private entities. Key players in space situational awareness (SSA) and space traffic management (STM) include:
- LeoLabs: A private company offering commercial SSA services with a global radar network.
- ExoAnalytic Solutions: Provides SSA data and services, primarily to government clients.
- Northrop Grumman (via SpaceLogistics): Involved in satellite servicing and related orbital operations.
- US Space Force / Space Command: The primary governmental entity for space domain awareness.
- European Space Agency (ESA) SSA Programme: Europe's governmental initiative for space safety.
Look Up differentiates itself through its integrated, full-stack solution and its strategic European focus, aiming to provide a sovereign alternative to existing capabilities.
With 90% of current low-Earth orbit tracking conducted by the United States, Look Up’s expansion, particularly with its French and Polynesian radar sites, signifies Europe’s ambition to reclaim sovereignty and establish a robust, independent capability in space surveillance and traffic management, ensuring the long-term sustainability and security of its orbital assets.
The equity portion was led by ETF Partners, with key participation from Leadwind (KFund), the EU’s EIC Fund, and continued support from returning investors MIG Capital, Karista, and Expansion. This exclusively European financial backing underscores a strategic commitment to regional space autonomy.
