Varda Space secures $187 million to explore space-based pharmaceutical manufacturing

Varda Space is making bold moves in the field of pharmaceutical manufacturing by taking the process to space. With the support of a $187 million Series C funding round, the company aims to build a 10,000-square-foot lab in El Segundo, California, dedicated to researching the crystallization of biologics like proteins and antibodies in microgravity. The company plans to use its space-based facilities to overcome critical challenges in drug production, such as crystallization, purity, and shelf-life stability. By studying these processes in space, Varda hopes to generate valuable intellectual property that can be licensed to pharmaceutical companies. Varda’s spacecraft, which it now manufactures in-house, have already completed several successful missions and are used for testing hypersonic flight for the U.S. Department of Defense. This innovative approach could transform the pharmaceutical industry, offering new solutions to long-standing problems and opening the door to new drug development possibilities.