Rendering of the Dark interceptor spacecraft. Photo: Dark

French space and defense startup Dark is shuttering its operations, the team announced Oct. 8. The company was focused on developing an air-launched spacecraft for defense missions, capable of capturing and de-orbiting other spacecraft. 

Dark had raised $11 million and secured development contracts with the French government, including a study contract with the French Defense Innovation Agency. The team shared some of the challenges to commercialization and the decision to shutter in a post on LinkedIn.

“Our ambition was to anchor a private capability that would both strengthen national security and generate economic and diplomatic value through export. Yet, while later entrants abroad, directly backed by their nations, secured their anchoring and took the lead globally, the foundation necessary for such privatization never materialized for us in France,” the Dark team said. 

“Continuing without this anchoring would have meant reshaping DARK into a fragile model dependent on a single customer,” they added. 

The team said Dark’s work contributed to system engineering and prototyping for space defense, and the company’s intellectual property will remain French. 

Dark’s closure comes despite France planning to ramp-up defense spending with space capabilities as an area of focus. The team stated a hope that France gains access to this type of space and defense capabilities. 

“Our conviction endures: France and Europe must build uncompromised capabilities shaped by tomorrow’s strategic realities, and foster category-defining players to lead worldwide,” the team said.