UK-based thermal intelligence company SatVu has closed a £30 million ($40 million) funding round, bringing its total equity raised to £60 million ($80 million). The round includes a strategic investment from the NATO Innovation Fund (NIF), supporting the company’s expansion of its space-based thermal imaging capabilities for defence and sovereign applications.
The funding will accelerate the rollout of SatVu’s multi-satellite constellation, enabling persistent, high-resolution thermal monitoring that provides governments with round-the-clock “Activity Intelligence” unavailable from conventional commercial sensors.
Scaling Space-Based Thermal Activity Intelligence
SatVu specializes in high-resolution thermal imaging from space, revealing operational activity and infrastructure performance both day and night. Its technology captures heat signatures associated with mobilisation, industrial activity, and infrastructure status — including inside and around buildings — providing insights critical for defence, security, and national resilience.
While a single satellite can observe any location on Earth, a constellation significantly increases revisit frequency. This enables continuous monitoring of operational readiness and patterns of activity throughout the day.
SatVu currently has two satellites — HotSat-2 and HotSat-3 — planned for launch in 2026. Three additional satellites (HotSat-4 and HotSat-5, along with long-lead elements of HotSat-6) are already under contract, securing the path toward a fully operational multi-satellite constellation.
With the constellation roadmap now defined, SatVu is transitioning from single-satellite capability demonstration to scalable commercial delivery.
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Strategic Backing from NATO and Institutional Investors
The funding round was supported by the NATO Innovation Fund, British Business Bank, Space Frontiers Fund II (managed by SPARX Asset Management), and Presto Tech Horizons. Existing investors including Molten Ventures (lead), Adara Ventures, Ridgeline Ventures, NOA, Lockheed Martin, Seraphim Space Fund, and Stellar Ventures also participated.
The NATO Innovation Fund’s investment reflects increasing demand among allied nations for sovereign, resilient intelligence capabilities. Thermal imaging adds a new intelligence layer, enabling governments to monitor critical infrastructure, military supply chains, covert activity, and industrial performance independently.
SatVu has also previously received support through UK defence innovation programs, including a Defence Innovation Loan awarded via the Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA), now part of UK Defence Innovation.
Transitioning from Demonstration to Delivery
The new capital positions SatVu to execute on near-term satellite launches and scale commercial operations. As sovereign customers seek independent intelligence capabilities, the company is moving decisively toward sustained delivery of persistent thermal monitoring at global scale.
High-resolution thermal Earth observation provides a differentiated ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) capability, offering visibility into operational change across complex and contested environments.
With £6 million (~$8 million) in pre-orders secured ahead of HotSat-2’s launch, SatVu is entering its next growth phase backed by institutional defence-aligned capital and a clear path to constellation deployment.
About SatVu
SatVu is a UK-based thermal intelligence company delivering high-resolution thermal imagery from space for government and defence customers. Its satellites capture day-and-night activity at 3.5m resolution, enabling detection of operational change across critical infrastructure, industrial sites, and defence environments. The company is executing toward a multi-satellite constellation designed to provide persistent, sovereign-relevant intelligence at global scale.
