Albedo
YC W21Denver, US · Founded 2020 · Delaware corporation · 55 employees · Hiring · 19 known investors
Albedo develops a flight-proven platform for Very Low Earth Orbit operations, providing satellite-based insights and connectivity services for national security and critical infrastructure systems. The company focuses on making space infrastructure operationally viable and resilient.
Advanced ManufacturingClimate TechDeep TechDefense TechSpace TechHard TechSatellitesClimateAerospaceUnited States of AmericaAmerica / CanadaPartly Remote
Founders & leadership· Y Combinator alumni (W21)
Albedo was founded in 2020 by Topher Haddad, AyJay Lasater, and Winston Tri.
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Topher Haddadin𝕏Co-founder & CEOTopher Haddad previously worked as a systems engineer at Lockheed Martin on remote sensing satellite programs, where he led teams in optical design and imaging architecture. He holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and an M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University.
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AyJay LasaterinFounderHe previously served as a System Architect at Lockheed Martin, where he worked on satellite constellation design and performance analysis across small and large-scale platforms. He holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Colorado School of Mines and an M.S. in Mechatronics from the University of Denver.
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Winston TriCo-founder
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Dylan BettsExecutive
Board
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Ben SampsonBoard director
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Kathryn TobeyBoard director
Investors · 19
Angel Collective Opportunity FundSan Francisco
Black FlagSan Diego · $100K – $1M
Booz Allen Ventures
Breakthrough Energy VenturesBoston · $500K – $50M
Dnx VenturesTokyo · $1M – $5M
JetstreamSan Francisco
Republic Capital (ex Republic Labs)New York
Shield CapitalSan Francisco
TRAC (Third Round Analytics Capital)San Francisco · $250K – $2Mvia Fred Campbell · inferred
Wayfinder VenturesSan Francisco · $300K – $1M
Y CombinatorSan Francisco · $500K
Cubit Capitalreported · 2 sourcesDallas · $500K – $3M
Giant Step Capitalreported · 2 sourcesChicago
Initialized Capitalreported · 3 sourcesSan Francisco · $1M – $5M
Lombardstreet VenturesreportedWoodside · $500K
Standard InvestmentsreportedNew York
Also in the syndicate · 3
AWS StartupsGeneral Innovation CapitalleadRepublic Capital
Reported raises · per SEC filings
Form D private placements$32.4M disclosed across 2 of 3 rounds · 2022–2024
▶$3MraisedAug 2024 · 1 investors · Other TechnologyRule 506(b)
▶$3MraisedAug 2024 · 1 investors · Other Technology
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- Christopher HaddadExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Kathryn TobeyDirector
- Andrew LasaterExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Christian GarciaDirector
- Winston TriExecutive Officer, Promoter
- Raj ShahDirector
- Dylan BettsExecutive Officer
- Ben SampsonDirector
- Offering amount
- $5.2M
- Amount sold
- $3M
- First sale
- Aug 2024
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware, 2020
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶$29.4MraisedNov 2023 · 20 investors · Other TechnologyRule 506(b)
▶$29.4MraisedNov 2023 · 20 investors · Other Technology
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- Andrew LasaterExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Christopher HaddadExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Winston TriExecutive Officer, Director, Promoter
- Christian GarciaDirector
- Dylan BettsExecutive Officer
- Raj ShahDirector
- Offering amount
- $40M
- Amount sold
- $29.4M
- First sale
- Oct 2023
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware, 2020
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
▶Undisclosed amountofferedJun 2022 · 90 investors · OtherRule 506(b)
▶Undisclosed amountofferedJun 2022 · 90 investors · Other
Rule 506(b)Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
- Christopher HaddadExecutive Officer
- First sale
- Jun 2022
- Incorporated
- Corporation, Delaware
- Federal exemptions
- 06b
Source: SEC EDGAR Form D. Amounts as filed; amended filings shown once at their latest values.
Competitors · 2
by search overlap
Capella Space51 shared keywordsCapella Space designs, builds, and operates synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite constellations that provide all-weather, day-and-night Earth observation imagery at sub-0.25m resolution. It offers an automated end-to-end tasking and data delivery platform serving defense and intelligence, maritime, disaster response, and infrastructure monitoring customers.
Esa44 shared keywordsThe European Space Agency (ESA) is Europe's intergovernmental organization for space, carrying out missions and research across space science, technology, and applications. It supports the competitiveness of the European space industry through procurement, commercial opportunities, and collaboration with its Member States.
Companies competing with Albedo for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.
Non-dilutive funding · 3 SBIR/STTR awards
Federal grants — no equity taken| Agency | Phase | Year | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Air ForceAir Force | Phase II | 2023 | $1.2M |
| U.S. Air ForceAir Force | Phase I | 2023 | $74.5K |
| U.S. Air ForceAir Force | Phase II | 2022 | $1.2M |
Source: SBIR.gov award data (U.S. Small Business Administration). SBIR/STTR awards are competitive federal R&D grants and contracts — non-dilutive capital alongside any venture rounds above.
In the news
Frequently asked questions
- What does Albedo do?
- Albedo develops a flight-proven platform for Very Low Earth Orbit operations, providing satellite-based insights and connectivity services for national security and critical infrastructure systems. The company focuses on making space infrastructure operationally viable and resilient.
- Who founded Albedo?
- Albedo was founded by Topher Haddad, AyJay Lasater, Winston Tri in 2020.
- Who are Albedo's investors?
- Albedo's investors include Angel Collective Opportunity Fund, Black Flag, Booz Allen Ventures, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Dnx Ventures, Jetstream, Republic Capital (ex Republic Labs), Shield Capital and 8 more.
- How much funding has Albedo raised?
- Albedo has disclosed $32.4M raised across 2 of its 3 known rounds.
- Where is Albedo headquartered?
- Albedo is headquartered in Denver, US.