Dispatch

Dispatch is a San Francisco hard-tech startup building the return leg of the space economy. Founded by ex-Astranis engineers, it develops refurbishable reentry vehicles and uncrewed, autonomous space stations so that pharmaceutical, semiconductor, and biotech companies can manufacture ultra-high-value materials in microgravity and bring them home affordably. Its first vehicle, Spark 1, targets a demonstration flight in 2027, and the team has already tested a full-scale Mach 20+ heat shield built roughly 100x cheaper than incumbents.