- AIRMO secures €5M ($5.4M) seed funding to launch its first methane tracking satellite mission in 2027 and scale airborne monitoring operations.
- The company’s hybrid SWIR imager and micro-LiDAR technology aims to provide the most precise and affordable greenhouse gas monitoring from space.
- Methane leaks account for roughly 30% of global warming and cost the energy industry about $30 billion annually, creating major regulatory and financial pressure for improved monitoring.
AIRMO, a space technology startup building an advanced greenhouse gas monitoring system that combines airborne and satellite sensing, has raised €5 million ($5.4 million) in seed funding to accelerate global methane detection efforts.
The investment will support the launch of the company’s first satellite mission in 2027 while expanding airborne monitoring operations across Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East. The round was led by Ananda Impact Ventures with participation from Unconventional Ventures, kopa ventures, Desai Ventures, Hypernova / New Venture Securities and two EQT Partners acting as strategic investors, Matthias Fackler and Francesco Starace.
Existing backers Antler, Findus Ventures, E2MC and Pi Labs also joined the round.
The funding comes as governments and investors intensify scrutiny of methane emissions, one of the fastest and most cost-effective climate mitigation opportunities for the energy sector.
Methane Monitoring Moves Into A New Technological Phase
Methane is responsible for about 30 percent of global warming. Yet industry oversight remains weak. Roughly 70 percent of methane leaks currently go unreported, leaving regulators and operators with limited visibility into real-world emissions.
AIRMO aims to close that gap by combining two sensing technologies into a compact satellite platform. The system integrates a short-wave infrared (SWIR) imaging spectrometer with micro-LiDAR technology, enabling active greenhouse gas detection rather than relying solely on passive satellite imagery.
Historically, methane monitoring from orbit has required tradeoffs between cost and measurement precision. AIRMO’s approach attempts to remove that compromise by shrinking sophisticated optical instruments into small satellites capable of delivering high-resolution measurements at lower cost.
For energy companies, the financial stakes are substantial. Methane leaks are estimated to cost the industry around $30 billion annually in lost gas, in addition to growing regulatory risks as governments tighten climate policies.
Early Adoption By Energy Sector And International Validators
AIRMO’s technology is already in commercial use through airborne platforms including drones and aircraft. Monitoring campaigns have been conducted across Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East, providing emissions detection services for major energy operators and independent verification organizations.
Among the early adopters are Uniper and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which use the system for infrastructure monitoring and emissions validation. The company’s research and development activities have also received support from TotalEnergies through its Technology and Innovation division since 2023.
CEO Daria Stepanova said the company’s goal is to build a global monitoring network capable of identifying emissions in near real time. “AIRMO has a simple mission: to help operators find and stop greenhouse gas losses, starting with methane. With this funding, we move beyond validation into continuous monitoring at scale and launching our first sensor into space is a major step toward our ambition to monitor 12 million energy assets worldwide.”
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Investors See Strategic Role In Energy Transition
Investors say methane transparency is emerging as one of the fastest pathways for decarbonizing the fossil fuel industry.
Alina Bassi, Principal at Ananda Impact Ventures, emphasized the importance of measurement accuracy in accelerating emissions reductions. “Methane leakage reduction is the most effective way to decarbonise the energy industry today. AIRMO’s ability to quantify GHG emissions from space with such high precision is a game-changer, finally solving a significant transparency problem for the energy sector. Having backed the team since inception, we are proud to continue supporting their journey as they move toward their first satellite launch.”
Scaling Toward Global Monitoring
The new capital will fund AIRMO’s transition from pilot programs to full commercial operations. The company plans to expand airborne monitoring campaigns across Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia while integrating its payload technology into Endurosat satellite platforms ahead of its 2027 orbital launch.
AIRMO also plans to establish a regional presence in the Middle East and North Africa as demand grows for emissions monitoring across major hydrocarbon producing regions.
The company was founded by aerospace engineer and entrepreneur Daria Stepanova, who previously worked on twelve satellite launches. The leadership team includes Dr. Christoph Grobbel, former CFO and co-founder of South Pole and Terra Impact Ventures; Dr. Errico Armandillo, former head of optoelectronics at the European Space Agency; and CTO David Vilaseca, a specialist in remote sensing space missions.
As governments implement methane disclosure rules and investors demand verified emissions data, technologies capable of independently measuring greenhouse gas leaks are becoming critical infrastructure for the energy transition.
If AIRMO’s satellite network performs as planned, it could provide regulators, companies and investors with a level of transparency that has historically been absent from global methane accounting.
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