Earth observation startup Esper Satellites has secured $1 million from a Northern Territory-based venture capital fund for winning the local Croc Pitch event.
Esper develops an analysis tool, dubbed EarthTones, for images captured beyond visible light. It can be used to track soil carbon in the agricultural sector, lithium and iron deposits in the mining sector, and sources of methane leakage.
To win the Darwin Innovation Hub’s sixth annual Croc Pitch event, the Melbourne-based company had to beat 35 other applicants, including eight other finalists on the day of the pitch event.
The companies represented a broad range of technologies, including AI-driven education tools, drones for industrial use and job matching apps.
The $1 million dollar investment comes out of the Paspalis Innovation Investment Fund managed by the Paspalis Corporation.
The funding will help Esper launch a constellation of 18 hyperspectral sensors that have been developed in-house.
Esper’s first hyperspectral payload was launched in March on board the ill-fated Space Machines Company’s Optimus satellite, which is no longer contactable.
However, Esper has still been able to deliver its services using sensors already put in orbit by other companies and plans to launch another sensor in January 2025. The company is also reportedly set to launch an additional four sensors in 2026.
Esper is opening a Darwin office and is already participating in the Northern Territory Geological Survey’s Resourcing the Territory program, which supports mining and mineral exploration with $9.5 million each year.
Paspalis chief executive Harley Paroulakis said “Esper’s technology is a major breakthrough for industries dependent on accurate data”.
“We’re excited to see how this investment will propel innovation and sustainability in mining and energy exploration,” he said.
The Croc Pitch winner was selected by the Paspalis investment committee, and advised by a three-member panel including Paspalis investment manager Alex Farrugia, Charles Darwin University Professor Steve Rogers, and Investment Territory’s Local Jobs Fund project manager Will Hurst.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this story conflated Paspalis Innovation Investment Fund with the territory government-backed Paspalis co-investment fund
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