An Adelaide startup is lined up to put Australian technology on the surface of the Moon, and most people here have never heard of it.
How it works
Fleet Space Technologies pairs a constellation of small satellites with seismic sensors on the ground. The sensors pick up natural vibrations moving through the earth, and AI turns that into a 3D map of what is underneath. Its ExoSphere system has been used by Rio Tinto on a lithium project in Argentina and by Barrick on copper exploration, and Fleet pitches it as much faster than traditional exploration surveys.
The Moon mission
The lunar payload is called SPIDER (Seismic Payload for Interplanetary Discovery, Exploration and Research). It is booked on Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission 2, which flies under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services program. SPIDER will listen to seismic waves under the lunar surface to study its mineral makeup and search for water ice.
The Australian Space Agency funded it with a $4M contract through its Moon to Mars program. Launch was expected no earlier than December 2026, and some listings now show 2027.
The money
Fleet’s last big round was a $150M Series D led by Teachers’ Venture Growth, the venture arm of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, valuing the company at about $800M. Blackbird, Hostplus and Horizons Ventures also came back in.
My read
This is the sort of company Australia should be loud about. It makes real money from mining first, then points the same tech at the Moon. If SPIDER gets down safely, it is being billed as the first Australian technology on the lunar surface.