SatVu, a London-based space technology company, is accelerating the development of Europe’s independent thermal intelligence capabilities after closing a £30 million funding round. The investment brings the company’s total equity funding to £60 million and marks a significant step in scaling its space-based thermal observation infrastructure at a time when governments and institutions are seeking greater autonomy over strategic intelligence assets.
The latest round includes a strategic investment from the NATO Innovation Fund, alongside participation from the British Business Bank, Space Frontiers Fund II managed by SPARX Asset Management, and Presto Tech Horizons. Existing backers also reinvested, including Molten Ventures, Adara Ventures, Ridgeline Ventures, NOA, Lockheed Martin, Seraphim Space Fund, and Stellar Ventures. The strong mix of defence, institutional, and deep tech investors highlights growing confidence in thermal Earth observation as a critical layer of intelligence.
Meeting the need for persistent intelligence
Across Europe and allied nations, defence and security planning increasingly depends on persistent, reliable insight into operational activity. Conventional imagery and monitoring tools often struggle to provide continuous visibility, particularly across large or sensitive infrastructure environments. This creates blind spots when assessing readiness, changes in activity, or emerging risks.
SatVu was founded to address this gap. The company develops high resolution thermal imaging technology that captures heat signatures from space, allowing users to detect activity both day and night. With a resolution of 3.5 metres, SatVu’s thermal data can reveal patterns linked to operational behaviour around buildings, industrial sites, and strategic assets that are not easily visible through other observation methods.
Thermal data as a strategic asset
SatVu’s core customers include government and defence organisations that require independent intelligence sources to support national security and resilience planning. Thermal imagery enables analysts to assess changes in activity, identify anomalies, and monitor critical infrastructure without relying on third party data providers.
Beyond defence and security, the same technology has broad industrial and environmental relevance. SatVu’s data is already being applied to monitor blast furnaces, cement plants, oil and gas facilities, data centres, and energy assets such as solar farms. In these contexts, thermal intelligence helps organisations understand operational efficiency, detect faults, and track emissions related activity over time.
Anthony Baker, co founder and CEO of SatVu, said the company was built to provide intelligence that governments cannot obtain elsewhere. He explained that thermal imagery reveals operational signals that are otherwise invisible, offering a new way to assess activity, readiness, and infrastructure performance in a rapidly changing geopolitical environment.
From single satellite to constellation
To date, SatVu has demonstrated its capabilities using a single satellite. While one satellite can observe any point on Earth, revisit times are limited. To unlock continuous monitoring and pattern analysis, higher frequency observations are essential.
The new funding will support the launch of two additional satellites in 2026. In parallel, three more satellites are already under contract, forming the foundation of a multi satellite constellation. This transition will significantly increase revisit rates, enabling SatVu to deliver persistent thermal intelligence and monitor changes in activity across time rather than isolated moments.
Scaling commercial operations
Moving from demonstration to full commercial scale is a critical milestone for SatVu. The company plans to use the capital to expand its satellite fleet, strengthen its data processing and analytics capabilities, and deepen relationships with government and industrial customers.
As demand grows for sovereign intelligence, resilient infrastructure monitoring, and independent observation capabilities, SatVu is positioning itself as a key European provider of thermal intelligence from space. The latest funding round reinforces its ambition to build a scalable, trusted constellation that supports defence readiness, industrial oversight, and climate related monitoring for years to come.