US startups ExLabs and Antares Industries, based in Southern California, have formed a strategic partnership to develop a nuclear-powered spacecraft for deep-space missions.
Through this partnership, microreactor technology developed by Antares will eventually be integrated into the ExLabs Science Exploration & Resource Vehicle (SERV), to establish a high-power spacecraft platform for Geostationary Orbit (GEO) and deep-space operations. Initial ExLabs missions, including its 2028 campaign to rendezvous with the asteroid Apophis, will not use nuclear power. However, ExLabs plans to send a spacecraft equipped with an Antares nuclear microreactor to geostationary orbit in late 2028 or 2029.
The collaboration represents a major advancement in space infrastructure, enabling long-duration missions, advanced propulsion capabilities, and scalable power solutions for commercial, defence, and scientific applications.
“The future of space infrastructure depends on scalable, high-power solutions, and nuclear technology is the key,” said Matt Schmidgall, CEO of ExLabs. “Our collaboration with Antares marks the beginning of a new chapter in spaceflight, where spacecraft can operate longer, travel farther, and support missions that were once impossible.”
The partnership’s first project will be a GEO demonstration mission, in which ExLabs will build and deploy a spacecraft hosting an Antares nuclear microreactor. This will serve as a critical validation for space-based nuclear power and set the stage for broader adoption of nuclear technologies for GEO and deep space missions.
Both ExLabs and Antares have multiple existing contracts with the US Space Force and US Air Force. The partnership will strengthen national capabilities in high-power space operations. The SERV platform will provide a mission-ready nuclear spacecraft to support civil government, defence, and commercial customers looking to expand their reach to the Moon, Mars, and asteroid targets.
ExLabs and Antares will then pursue long-term strategic collaborations, with ExLabs serving as a partner spacecraft provider and module integrator for Antares nuclear systems in space-based applications. The SERV platform will be optimised for nuclear propulsion, providing next-generation capabilities for deep space missions.
Will Madsen, Head of Mission Engineering at Antares said the partnership “pairs two companies with an ambitious vision and pragmatic roadmaps to bring space nuclear technologies to bear”. He added: “For too long, space nuclear power has solely existed in conceptual studies – now it’s time to build.”
ExLabs, founded in 2023, said, with a Mission-as-a-Service model, it is “unlocking the potential of deep-space exploration, planetary defence, and off-world resource utilisation. “We see a growing interest in the national security space in extended-mission vehicles which require nuclear capabilities,” Schmidgall said. “National security and cislunar infrastructure are going to require these capabilities.”
Antares, also founded in 2023, said it is fuelled by the belief that energy abundance and a strong defence industrial base are the keys to unlocking growth in the American standard of living. “That’s why we’re building transportable microreactors for the military”.
The founding team for the partnership “hails from SpaceX, the White House, MIT, Rigetti Computing, and the Air Force. We’ve raised over $8M in capital from top-tier investors, including Caffeinated Capital, Humba Ventures, Pathbreaker, Shrug, and many more”.
