Foundational 🇬🇧
London space startup building satellite reflectors and laser ground stations for precise positioning
About Foundational
The company provides satellite laser ranging (SLR) services through a global network of ground stations that utilize laser pulses to accurately measure satellite distances within millimeters. Their offerings include a line of passive laser retroreflectors designed for various mission types, along with an online data platform that delivers high-accuracy orbital data in multiple formats.
Foundational is a UK-based company founded in 2025, now around 20 people. It has raised $10.5M in disclosed funding. FundFinder classes it as DeepTech & Space.
Founded by Dave Gooding (Co-founder & CTO; previously European Space Agency - ESA, Hawk-Eye Innovations; UCL), David Balson (Co-Founder & COO/CSO; previously Alacrity Entrepreneurship Course, HEO; University of Nottingham).
Its investors also appear on FundFinder's most-active lists for Pre-seed · B2B (72 funds), Pre-seed · Generalist (71 funds), Pre-seed · AI (60 funds).
Company facts from Harmonic and public filings; team backgrounds from public profiles. Refreshed weekly.
Pre-seed · £8.2M · Oct 2026
BACKED VC- BACKED VC — BACKED is the human-centric venture capital fund. · cheques £250k – £3M