Investing in ORiS: The New Way to Power Space

Some technologies don't just improve an industry. They redefine what's possible.

That's why we invested in ORiS, an Italian deep tech company spun out of the renowned University of Turin (Politecnico di Torino), building laser-based wireless power transmission technology that beams energy to satellites in orbit and to drones in flight. Power, delivered precisely where and when it's needed, without landing, docking or waiting.

Pitchdrive co-led ORiS' €5M pre-seed round alongside Earlybird, with participation from Galaxia, Vento and Piemonte Next Fund. For Pitchdrive, it marks our first investment in SpaceTech and backs a team building what we believe will become a critical layer of future space infrastructure.

Energy is the bottleneck of the space economy

The next generation of space missions will demand more energy than today's spacecraft can efficiently generate and store. ORiS is addressing that challenge by making energy available directly in orbit.

For satellites in orbit, that could allow operators to use payloads more frequently, continue operating through eclipse periods and extend mission lifetimes as solar panels degrade. Looking ahead, readily available energy in orbit will fundamentally reshape how spacecraft are designed, opening new ways to size electrical power systems, manage payload operations and plan more ambitious missions.

ORiS’ vision is to support the disruptive growth of the space economy by reshaping the standard for how satellites are designed and operated.
— Andrea Villa, CEO and Co-founder at ORiS

More than a moonshot

ORiS was founded by Andrea Villa, Anna Mauro, Domenico Edoardo Sfasciamuro and Francesco Lopez while studying Aerospace Engineering at Politecnico di Torino. Over the past four years, the team has combined deep expertise in lasers, optics and aerospace engineering with a clear focus on commercialisation. From our very first conversations, it was clear they weren't only thinking about the technology. They were equally focused on customers, product development and building a company with lasting impact.

That thinking is reflected in ORiS' dual-use roadmap. While the long-term ambition is to build an in-orbit energy distribution grid, the company is already validating the same core technology through LOONA, its wireless power transmission platform for drones developed within NATO DIANA. Having successfully demonstrated wireless power transfer over more than 100 metres, LOONA provides both a near-term dual-use application and an opportunity to validate the laser, tracking and control technologies that will ultimately enable wireless power transmission in space.

"ORiS' dual-use roadmap combines near-term validation with an ambitious vision for the future. LOONA gives the company a faster path to validating its core wireless power technology and building commercial momentum, while supporting its broader vision of making energy more accessible in space."
— Koen Christiaens, Managing Partner at Pitchdrive

With this pre-seed funding, ORiS will expand its engineering team, accelerate development of its wireless power transmission technology and prepare for its first in-orbit mission in 2027. As the company continues to validate its technology both on Earth and in space, it's taking another step toward making in-orbit energy distribution a reality.