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Atlas Space Operations Secures $26M Series B Funding Led by Mitsui

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Atlas Space Operations, an NMA Portfolio Company, Secures $26M Series B Funding Led by Mitsui

Traverse City, Michigan – August 26th, 2022 (BUSINESS WIRE)

ATLAS Space Operations, a global leader in cloud-based space communications solutions, today announced $26 million in Series B Funding led by Mitsui & Co., Ltd. The investment round reaffirms confidence in ATLAS’ Ground Software as a Service™ (G-SaaS) approach as a critical solution within the space economy.

The funding round is a part of strategic initiatives for both Mitsui and ATLAS. For ATLAS, this investment accelerates its plan for international growth, as well as its Ground Software as a Service business model. This is ATLAS’ industry disruptive software (Freedom™) solution which integrates complex disparate networks for government and commercial clients across a federated network.

For Mitsui, its investment in ATLAS further demonstrates the corporation’s commitment to its space portfolio. Mitsui has identified an area of focus for innovative companies that provide services to satellite operators. In 2018, Mitsui acquired a minority stake in BlackSky Global followed by an acquisition of Spaceflight, Inc, a U.S. satellite rideshare service provider, in 2020. The investment in ATLAS advances Mitsui’s position in the space industry as one of its new targeted growth areas.

Sean McDaniel, ATLAS Co-founder and CEO, stated, “A strategic partnership with Mitsui validates ATLAS’ position as a global leader in satellite communications services. This investment well capitalizes the company to accelerate growth in key areas of commercial and US government markets for which our services are in high demand. With this new partnership, ATLAS can expand its team to provide enterprise-level Ground Software as a Service solutions for the DoD Hybrid Space Architecture while increasing our market share in the private sector with our low risk, high-end services.”

Kazutomi Shigeeda, General Manager of Space Business Department in Mitsui, stated, “This investment in ATLAS expands our space business as a service provider for satellite operators. We strongly believe that ATLAS Ground Software as a Service can maximize the value of the ground stations and integrate other governmental and commercial ground station networks. In the future, we consider that ATLAS will be able to integrate satellite data relay networks as part of its own network, and it will lead us to the next generation satellite-ground communication infrastructure business. In order for ATLAS to achieve its vision, we will support its growth in collaboration with our space business portfolio and by utilizing Mitsui’s industrial network.”

About ATLAS Space Operations:

ATLAS Space Operations is a leading provider of Ground Software as a Service™ solutions in the space communications industry. ATLAS has been recognized by the World Teleport Association to be in the top three fastest-growing teleport operators in the world for the past two years, and was recognized as the 15th fastest-growing software company in the world in 2020 by Inc. 5000. ATLAS combines the Freedom™ Software Platform and its global antenna network to achieve its mission of connecting humanity through space. To learn more, visit atlasground.com.

About Mitsui & Co., Ltd.:

Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (8031: JP) is a global trading and investment company with a diversified business portfolio that spans approximately 63 countries in Asia, Europe, North, Central & South America, The Middle East, Africa, and Oceania. Mitsui has built a strong and diverse core business portfolio covering the Mineral and Metal Resources, Energy, Machinery and Infrastructure, and Chemicals industries. Mitsui has positioned the space business as one of our new growth areas and is working to create new business opportunities with increasing demand for space-related services. For more information on Mitsui & Co’s businesses visit, www.mitsui.com.

ATLAS is a Northern Michigan Angels portfolio company. The investment from Mitsui is joined in this funding round with Beringea, and accompanied by foundational funding from Boomerang Catapult, Rise of the Rest, VCapital, Harmonix, Wakestream, and Grand Ventures.

Contact Information:
Dan Carey
Marketing Director, ATLAS Space Operations
+1 (231) 598-6814 ext 105
dcarey@atlasground.com

Atlas Space Team

Investment angels seek more members to expand Northern Michigan presence

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This article appeared in The Petoskey News-Review – September 21, 2021

Written by Paul Welitzkin

GAYLORD — One of the biggest obstacles fledgling entrepreneurs face is raising capital to get a business off the ground. In many cases, the entrepreneur’s idea is so new that traditional forms of financing such as bank loans may not be available.

That’s where angel investors enter the picture.

According to the Angel Capital Association, angels are high net-worth individuals who invest their money in start-up companies in exchange for an equity share of the businesses in many cases. 

Here in Northern Michigan, the Northern Michigan Angels (NMA) have provided over $6.7 million in investment to over 30 companies over a nine-year period.

“The best way to think about angel investing is this: companies start out with funds from the owners and their families. Then at some point venture capitalists come into the picture. Angel investors are in between those two groups,” said John Zaloudek of Williamsburg, an NMA board member.

Right now the NMA is looking to expand its membership.

“We started out in 2012 focused on Traverse City,” Zaloudek said. “We are currently expanding that geographical area for new members from Charlevoix, Gaylord, Harbor Springs and Petoskey.”

By adding new members, Zaloudek said the group will generate more investment capital and add industry and functional experience that will help NMA to assess the benefits and risks of companies it considers for investment.

There are requirements from the Securities and Exchange Commission that must be met before becoming an accredited investor. Zaloudek said investors must have a net worth of at least $1 million excluding the primary residence or an annual salary of at least $200,000 for two years.

Make no mistake, angel investing is considered a high risk opportunity. The businesses are startups with “high risk and everyone who is a member understands that,” Zaloudek said.

Someone has an idea for a product or service and they develop it into something they think is marketable,” said Zaloudek. “They make a presentation to us and then we decide whether or not to invest in the business.”

The investment can range from $5,000 and up.

“Each member decides whether to invest or not. They don’t have to invest in a certain number each year,” added Zaloudek. “We usually have two companies pitch to the membership each month and then one usually gets an investment while the other doesn’t.”

Traverse City-based Atlas Space Operations is among the companies that the angels have invested in, pumping over $1 million into this company over a five year period.

The NMA investment enables Atlas to maintain updates to its trademarked Freedom software that is designed to enable seamless communication between clients’ satellites and Atlas’ collection of ground antennas.

Another firm is Ann Arbor-based BlueWillow Biologics, a privately held clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that produces nasal vaccines to protect global populations from respiratory infections, sexually transmitted diseases, and food allergies.

The NMA has invested $750,000 into Promethient, Inc. over five years. The Traverse City company uses a carbon-based, flexible material called graphene to deliver “Human Scaled Climate Control” under its Thermavance brand.

In June, NMA launched a new website. Included is an easy way for start-up business founders to alert NMA about their product or service and stage of development.

Zsuzsanna Fluck of the Eli Broad Graduate School of Business at Michigan State University said there are several companies that have received angel funding at their seed stage including well known names like Uber and DoorDash. Some more recent examples include Digg, Adstage, Handshake, and Misfit Wearables.

“Angels invest their own money. Venture capitalists, in contrast, raise funds from institutions, endowments, investment offices of wealthy individuals, retirement funds, and invest ‘other people’s money’ via venture capital funds,” said Fluck.

She said angels invest a smaller amount of capital than venture capitalists (typically around $25,000-$200,000).

“They provide financing for companies too young to appear on the venture capitalists’ radar. Angels are typically willing to agree to more flexible terms. Unlike venture capitalists, they are not bound by the partnership agreement of a fund or by fund economics,” she added.

Fluck said angel investing can be useful in rural areas like Northern Michigan where venture capital funds are farther away.

“Angels play a very important role in helping to launch promising startups by providing them with funding (and advice) in the pre-revenue stage. Once the startup achieves some milestones such as a prototype or some revenue, the angels can help to connect the startups to venture capitalists for more investment and mentoring,” said Fluck.  

 

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Update From Our Partner: 20Fathoms

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Here is an update from our community partner 20 Fathoms…

“…our inaugural HealthSpark Accelerator wrapped up with our Demo Day last month, but we’ve got news of a brand-new tech event — Northern Michigan Startup Week — kicking off in May 2022.  Our Beer30 networking events have been flourishing, and the Women in Tech meetup is increasing in attendance each month. Feel free to join us and meet more of the startup/tech community!

Other news of interest in this newsletter:

HealthSpark Accelerator graduates first cohort of digital and telehealth startups

The HealthSpark Accelerator, a program of 20Fathoms, recently graduated the 10 companies in the first cohort.  On June 30, they presented their final pitches to a panel of VIP judges and successfully completed the intensive, 12-week program. During the accelerator, these founders networked with industry and investment experts, raised funds, expanded their businesses, made friends, won pitch competitions, and applied their learnings to help scale their businesses.

Meet the Mentor: Dave Summers

Dave is a 20Fathoms mentor, in addition to serving as Vice Chairman of SCORE Traverse City and a Director with Northern Michigan Angels. Over the span of his career, he has worked with over 100 companies in chairman, director, investor, senior leadership, and mentor positions. Recently, we asked him to share some insights from his deep expertise advising companies.

Why coworking and entrepreneurship spaces are crucial to digital economic development

The Center on Rural Innovation recently identified three pieces of necessary infrastructure that rural communities need for digital economy ecosystems: Broadband, coworking and entrepreneurship spaces, and local leadership capacity. They’ve also highlighted how their communities model them, and offer best practices for how other rural communities can enhance their own infrastructure.
Related: 20Fathoms, a nonprofit organization, is now accepting donations via our website. We rely on the support of our community to help us provide educational programming, office space, resources, and community that fuels growth in Northern Michigan.

New Members

We are pleased to welcome (and welcome back) a plethora of new members to our space!

  • Alaura Anderson, Owner/President of Arrowhead Bookkeeping
  • Nick Beadleston, Founding Partner at Good Impacts
  • Marisa Behnke, Customer Experience Strategist at Signet Jewelers
  • Spencer Couturier, Radiologist at Grand Traverse Radiology
  • Joel Evenhouse, Client Success Manager RIA at Betterment
  • Nathaniel Harris
  • Pamela Harris-Kenwabikise, Owner/Operator of Chippewa Creations
  • Jacob Miller, Director of Foundational Informatics, IBM Watson Health
  • Nicole Raphael, Ojimaakwe of Financial Literacy Services by Indigi Qkwe
  • Elaine Tait, Principal and Futurist at Great Lakes GrowthWorks
  • Marion Wabanimkee-Minzey, CEO of MPC Backwoods

Join Our Community

Our members are tech entrepreneurs who include startup leaders, small business owners, chief technology officers, developers, and designers. At 20Fathoms they’ve each found a home and an environment that promotes productivity, creative problem solving, and new connections. Learn more about our workspace.

Northern Michigan Startup Week

Save the Date!: May 9-15, 2022
Join us for Northern Michigan Startup Week, hosted by 20Fathoms in collaboration with Northern Michigan Angels and Newton’s Road. There are three tracks available: High School Invention Competition, College Startup Competition, and the TechStars Startup Weekend.

Beer30

Thursday, Jul. 29 and Aug. 12, 3:30 – 5:30 pm
20Fathoms
Join us for a relaxed evening of beers (provided by The Workshop Brewing Company), conversation, and gorgeous views of West Bay. This is a great way to reconnect with 20Fathoms or check out our new space! Please RSVP.

Women in Tech

Thursday, Aug. 19, 6 – 8 pm
The Filling Station
Women in Tech is a northern Michigan social group for anyone who identifies as a woman and is working in/interested in the tech industry or tech-related roles. They promote building local connections, professional growth, and supporting women entering and advancing in the industry. Questions? Drop us a line at womenintech@workwithloop.com.
In this role of Vice President — IT and Software Engineering (with a 20Fathoms member company), you will leverage your background and expertise in software development, financial services, cloud architectures, and agile methodologies to internally drive the planning and delivery of a custom FinTech platform. Please send resumes and leads to careers@20fathoms.org.
20Fathoms member business Allovance is a software start-up focused on strategic prioritization, strategic alignment, and decision-making. They are seeking a Full Stack React Developer (Contract).
The position of Senior Software Developer is an exciting opportunity to join the growing tech team at Starboard Solutions, a 20Fathoms member business. This is a remote position, although candidates must live in Michigan, Colorado, or Montana.
As a member of the Portland Team, the Associate will be responsible for building, maintaining, and improving advanced financial models. This position requires a high level of understanding of the energy industry and project financing. Please send resumes or leads to careers@20fathoms.org.
20Fathoms seeks to hire an Associate, Strategy & Innovation. As a member of the Innovation Team, this associate will help lead efforts to develop unique energy solutions for data centers utilizing both on- and off-site energy assets. Please send resumes or leads to careers@20fathoms.org.

Job Board for Local and Remote Tech Professionals

Looking for your next opportunity in tech? Check out our Tech Job Board, curated weekly for remote job opportunities for developer, design, and marketing tech professionals.

Local Innovator: Cherry Capital Foods and Tamarack Holdings

Traverse City-based Cherry Capital Foods and their family of companies under the Tamarack Holdings umbrella are local food industry leaders. They, along with partners throughout the state, are working on a grant-funded project to analyze and develop solutions to food waste. They intend to use technology to align supply chain management with consumption.”

Learn More at 20Fathoms.org
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20Fathoms June Update

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The latest from our community partner 20Fathoms…

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Ford Insurance Business Minute: 20Fathoms

Ryan Confer of Ford Insurance Agency recently sat down with Lauren Bigelow, Executive Director of 20Fathoms, to learn about our community of startups and the value they bring to the Northern Michigan region. In the video, they discuss the goals of 20Fathoms as we work to assist startups, our various programs, and more.

Women in Tech

Thursday, June 17, 5:00 – 6:30 pm
The Filling Station
Join Traverse City’s very own Women in Tech as they great the summer with an informal meetup. Please RSVP if you plan on attending!

Beer30

Friday, June 25, 3:30 – 5:30 pm
Raise a glass to our amazing 20Fathoms community at our newly reinstated Beer30s! We’ll be hosting it at our space, with RSVPs required. Members of the public and the 20Fathoms community are welcome!

Ready to Break Free from Your Home Office?

Join us for a tour and we’ll show you what 20Fathoms has to offer. Complete the form to get started.

HealthSpark Accelerator Demo Day

Wednesday, Jun. 30, 12:00 – 2:30 pm
Experience the ingenuity of the fearless founders revolutionizing healthcare.

The HealthSpark Accelerator supports a diverse group of founders with world-class resources that help them grow and scale. Our inaugural cohort of digital and tele-health founders are building bold businesses that will transform the world we live in. Tune in on Wednesday, June 30, to hear from companies on the frontlines of innovation in rural healthcare and get an early view of the newest digital health technologies.

Our HealthSpark Accelerator companies are focused on resolving challenges that impact patients, providers, and caregivers in rural areas, including chronic disease management, access to care, remote patient monitoring, patient follow-up and compliance, care management, mental health, and provider burnout. Demo Day is the showcase event for the 2021 HealthSpark Accelerator cohort, hosted by 20Fathoms After 11 weeks in this high-intensity acceleration program, founders from the 10 participating digital health companies will give their pitches to a panel of judges.

Investors; leaders in healthcare innovation, digital health, and rural healthcare; members and supporters of healthcare, tech, and startup communities; and community leaders; are all invited to attend.

Financial Management

Wednesday, Jun. 16, 3:00 – 4:00 pm
During this webinar we’ll guide you through the basics of financial management. You’ll learn about the importance of a bookkeeping system as we review real small business examples of Cash Flow Statements, Profit & Loss, and Balance Sheets. We’ll guide you through about 40 minutes of the most important questions to ask yourself when starting a business, pausing for audience questions and feedback along the way. We have reserved 20 minutes for a live question and answer session, in which one of our certified small business consultants will answer questions from the audience on a first come, first served basis.

NFTs – Explosive Growth and Where the Technology is Headed

Thursday, Jun. 17, 1:00 pm
NFTs – a digital asset that represents real-world objects like art, music, in-game items and videos and built on the Ethereum blockchain – are an exciting new area of technology. With $150M transacted in 2020 to $1.5B transacted in Q1 2021 alone, the velocity around this sector is explosive. Please join Orrick for a conversation with leading investors, issuers, and exchanges to discuss where the technology is headed and how NFTs can be leveraged for brand building and IP protection, additional revenue streams, and risk mitigation.

The Journey of the LBTQIA+ Entrepreneur

Thursday, Jun. 17, 1:00 pm 
Mentor Makers Live is honored to have Andres Wydler from StartOut, Juliette-Marie Somerset of Somerset Capital, and Yasir Fattah from OPEN (Out Proud Employees of Nasdaq) in an intimate fireside chat + Live Q&A. In this session, we’ll explore LGBTQIA+ entrepreneurship and mentorship, how to be an ally to LGBTQIA+ entrepreneurial community, communities of entrepreneurs within the LGBTQIA+ community facing challenges disproportionately, etc.

Small Business Set-Aside Programs: What You Need to Know

Thursday, Jun. 22, 1:00 pm
The federal government spends approximately $500 billion in private sector contracts every year. Over 20% of those contracts must be awarded to small businesses in set-aside programs. For investors considering investments in small businesses in these set-aside programs, it is important to not only understand each program’s requirements, but how each program fits into the investor’s strategic goals. Join Cy Alba and Meghan Leemon, attorneys in PilieroMazza’s Government Contracts Group, as they discuss key details of the government’s small business set-aside programs.

Product Market Fit

Wednesday, Jun. 23, 2:00 pm
Pavan Katepalli attained Product Market Fit(PMF) while an early stage C-level executive at Trilogy Education Services and was acquired for $750M. After the exit, he embarked upon studying PMF. In this session, Pavan will share how to use customer interviews to gain context and hidden insight around the problem you’re solving, choose the right customer to build your product around, prioritize your product roadmap around customer interviews and actions, and choose the right actions to measure stickiness in your product.

IER & How it Can Help Foreign-Born Founders

Thursday, Jul. 8, 1:30 pm EST
Join NVCA and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to learn more about how the International Entrepreneurial Rule (IER) can enrich the VC ecosystem by creating additional avenues for foreign-born entrepreneurs to build companies in the U.S.

Enhanced Model Term Sheet v2.0

Thursday, Jul. 15, 1:00 pm EST
Join NVCA and Aumni to learn more about the Enhanced Model Term Sheet v2.0, which will democratize access to key insights and help venture investors as they partner with entrepreneurs to build new companies. With significant growth in global VC investment, access to actionable analytics has never been more critical for the private market.