Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy Ventures are helping fund the new rocket by Stoke Space.
Breakthrough Energy Ventures is an organization that falls under the umbrella of Breakthrough Energy, which Bill Gates founded in 2015, and aims to fund sustainable energy technology initiatives. The organization's Series A funding round in December 2021 saw $65 million going to Stoke Space, a rocket company based out of Seattle.
Stoke Space was founded by former Blue Origin and SpaceX employees in 2019. They have since received funding from the National Science Foundation after winning the SBIR Phase 1 grant and raised an additional $9.1 million through seed funding led by the NFX and MaC Ventures. The funds are being put toward developing a fully reusable and environmentally friendly rocket.
"There is no better way to see the Earth and the severity of its climate challenges than looking at the entire globe from space," Carmichael Roberts, co-leader of Breakthrough Energy Ventures' investment committee.
