ROCKET LAB

Peter Beck grew up in Invercargill, New Zealand (population 50,000) and was obsessed with rockets from childhood. He built his first rocket engine in his garage as a teenager.

After working at a New Zealand industrial research organization, he founded Rocket Lab in 2006 with the thesis that small satellites needed a dedicated small rocket — not a ride-share on a big rocket where you have no control over timing or orbit. The Electron rocket first reached orbit in 2018, making Rocket Lab the first private company outside the US to reach orbit.

They chose New Zealand as a launch site for its clear skies, minimal air traffic, and favorable launch trajectories.

Rocket Lab builds and launches rockets and spacecraft. Revenue comes from three segments: launch services (putting satellites in orbit on the Electron rocket), spacecraft manufacturing (building satellite buses and components for customers), and space systems (solar panels, reaction wheels, separation systems sold to other satellite makers).

They also have a satellite constellation business (Globalstar partnership) and are developing the larger Neutron rocket for heavier payloads.

Electron (small launch vehicle, 50+ launches), Neutron (medium launch vehicle, in development), Photon (satellite bus), Pioneer (satellite bus), Space components (solar panels, reaction wheels, separation systems)

Launch Neutron to compete for medium-to-large satellite payloads (government and commercial). Grow the spacecraft manufacturing business — selling satellite components is recurring revenue with better margins than launch.

Win more government contracts (NASA, Space Force, NRO). Build a vertically integrated space company that handles everything from building satellites to launching them.

Competing with SpaceX. Elon Musk's company dominates launch with Falcon 9 and offers rideshare missions at prices that are hard to beat on a per-kilogram basis.

Rocket Lab's advantage is dedicated orbits and fast turnaround — but as SpaceX continues to drop prices, the competitive pressure is intense. Developing the Neutron rocket (medium-class, reusable) is capital-intensive and technically challenging.

Khosla Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, DCVC, Lockheed Martin, K1W1 (Stephen Tindall), public market investors