Letara Secures Total ¥1.8 Billion in Funding with Frontier Innovations Joining Seed Round
- chrisyuen3
- Jun 6
- 2 min read
Letara’s Hybrid Propulsion System Scheduled for History’s First-Ever In-Space Demonstration in 2026
June 6, 2025 – Sapporo, Japan — Letara Inc. (Headquarters: Sapporo, Hokkaido; Co-CEOs: Shota Hirai and Landon Kamps) has announced that it has raised additional capital through a funding round led by the venture fund Frontier Innovations No.1 Investment Limited Partnership, operated by Frontier Innovations Inc. (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Tatsuhiko Nishimura). Including earlier investments from Incubate Fund, ANA Airlines, and others, Letara’s total seed round funding has reached ¥800 million, bringing its cumulative total raised to ¥1.8 billion.
With this new backing from Frontier Innovations, Letara will accelerate R&D efforts toward a 2026 space demonstration. This mission is expected to be the world’s first orbital deployment of a satellite using hybrid propulsion technology, effectively becoming the first-ever plastic propulsion system in history to be launched into space.
Beyond capital, Letara looks forward to hands-on support and deep industry expertise from Frontier Innovations as it continues to scale.
Founded in 2020, Letara is a Hokkaido-university startup developing an innovative hybrid chemical propulsion system for spacecraft, using solid plastic as fuel. Its patented ignition technology is the first of its kind in the world, and the system enables rapid orbital transfers, multiple reignitions, and precise maneuvering in space — all while enhancing safety and achieving up to 60% cost reduction in fuel handling.
These past five years have been full of rapid growth and new possibilities for Letara, and as of April 2025, the company has officially expanded from small-scale satellite propulsion to announcing a new hybrid rocket engine partnership with Tokyo-based Innovative Space Carrier (ISC). The new hybrid rocket is planned to be launched into space as early as 2028.
Comment from Frontier Innovations CEO Tatsuhiko Nishimura:
"We believe Letara’s hybrid chemical propulsion engine — which combines safety, thrust, reusability, and cost-efficiency — is a core technology for the next generation of space infrastructure. Frontier Innovations is excited by its strong technical advantage and is proud to invest. We look forward to supporting Letara in strengthening Japan’s competitiveness in the global space industry."
Comment from Letara Co-CEO Shota Hirai:
 "Mr. Nishimura, General Partner of Frontier Innovations, has served as a committee member for the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), the Cabinet Office, JAXA, and NEDO. He has long championed the growth of Japan’s space startups. With Frontier Innovations’ unique focus on space and its close ties to JAXA, we are excited to partner together and bring our propulsion system to orbit." |
Link to the PR Times news article in Japanese:
https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000018.000109623.html
■ Invest in The Future of Orbital Transportation
With patented hybrid propulsion and growing industry traction, Letara is unlocking a new era of maneuverability in space. We invite visionary investors to collaborate with us in driving this breakthrough technology forward.
Contact us at: www.letara.space
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