Canada Rocket Company (CRC) based in Toronto is officially coming out of stealth after raising $6.2M in its seed round and boasts two former SpaceX employees.
In a press release the company said the seed round was co-led by the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) and Garage Capital, and included participation from Ripple Ventures, Panache Ventures, Northside Ventures, and Cold Capital.
Mark Smith, Partner & Team Lead with the Seed Venture Fund said, “Canada Rocket Company is led by an ambitious team with deep expertise in rocket science and orbital launch operations. We believe their differentiated approach and scalable architecture is a pathway to leadership in a critical market. With its BDC Capital funds and new $4‑billion Defence Platform, BDC is helping SMEs scale in defence supply chains, accelerate dual-use innovation, and strengthen Canada’s economic sovereignty. CRC is exactly the type of Canadian innovation we aim to propel.”
Mike McCauley, General Partner at Garage Capital added, “Canada’s world-class engineering talent has played a critical role in building the space-launch capabilities the world relies on today. CRC has assembled a founding team with firsthand experience designing, building, and flying modern orbital-class rockets. At a time when sovereign access to space is becoming strategically essential, CRC enables Canada’s top engineers to do their life’s work at home – building launch capability for Canada. We couldn’t be more excited to support this team and be part of this mission.”
Additional backing comes from Canadian founders and angels associated with companies including Shopify, Wealthsimple, Ada, Humi, Inkbox, Holos, and notably Kepler Communications.
The company was co-founded by Hugh Kolias who is CEO and David Tenny who is CTO.
Space and defence startup with years of direct orbital launch experience
The company bills itself as a space and defence startup and said it “is developing a scalable launch system intended to support national security and commercial missions while building Canada’s launch workforce and supply chain.”
The company is positioning itself to take advantage of Canada’s recent quest for sovereign launch capability including the Launch the North challenge. They are also looking to repatriate Canadian talent.
CRC’s CEO Hugh Kolias said, “For years, Canada’s most valuable aerospace export hasn’t been hardware—it’s been people. CRC is creating a reason for experienced engineers to come home and for the next generation to build their careers here.”
Kolias an entrepreneur with a mechanical engineering degree who has worked as an investment analyst before founding yuhu, a “SaaS solution for multifamily operations used by ~200,000 apartment units across Canada, (and the) US” which he later sold to HappyCo.
David Tenny worked for close to 10 years with SpaceX and was a Senior Propulsion Engineer. He worked on landing and reusability including the Merlin 1D engine. His last role at SpaceX was that of Falcon 9 Production Optimization Program Lead. He’ll bring his considerable SpaceX experience to his new role as Chief Technology Officer.
Also on the initial team is Eric Kupp who worked for just over six years at SpaceX and was a Lead Avionics Engineer when he left leading the Dragon Avionics Systems team.
There are others on the initial development team and they will be revealed in the coming week.
The launch vehicles and technology
A unique Canadian engine and reusability, mark some of the technology the company is touting.
The company said it’s developing Canada’s only Methalox engine, the E-1. The E-1 is their 700kN (Kilonewtons) GG (Gas Generator) engine – powered by Liquid Oxygen (LOX) / Liquid Methane (CH4). Not surprisingly, SpaceX uses a Methalox engine, the Raptor for Starship.
CRC said their Methalox is “sourced from Canadian natural gas, liquid methane burns without the carbon soot buildup typical of kerosene, enabling rapid engine reuse essential for competitive launch economics. Methalox positions our vehicle alongside the world’s most advanced next-generation flight systems.”
The company is going to focus first on developing the R-1 “Responsive Light Lift” launch vehicle which they say is capable of delivering up to 700kg to low Earth orbit (LEO) or 400kg to Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO). The R-1 uses a single E-1 engine.
The R-1 is designed to provide responsive for time-sensitive missions. The company says its design provides the “industrialized foundation for the medium-lift vehicle.”
“By maintaining design continuity across vehicle classes—standardizing propulsion, structures, avionics, and ground systems around a common methaLOX engine architecture designed for high-cadence, reusable operations—CRC’s approach supports near-term operational launch capability and long-term global competitiveness.”
Kolias told SpaceQ that engine tests will begin “in a few months” and that “full power” engine testing of E-1 would happen by the end of 2027.
The company’s longer term goal is developing a reusable medium-lift launch vehicle dubbed the R-2 which is powered by seven E-1 Methalox engines capable of delivering up to 6,500kg to LEO (500km).
Initial partners and advisors
CRC said it has already partnered with five Canadian companies and suppliers including Eagle Flight Network (Indigenous-owned), NGC Aerospace, Mission Control, Moon and Mars Industries, and Launch Canada.
The company has also added two notable advisors including former Canadian Space Agency Director of Planetary Exploration and Space Astronomy. Alain Berinstain. Just this week Berinstain was appointed as the New Director of the Florida Space Institute at University of Central Florida.
Also added to the advisory board is Mina Mitry, Co-founder and CEO of Kepler Communcations. Mitry added his thoughts on CRC saying “Canada’s satellite sector needs a domestic launch partner with both the right architecture and the right people. CRC is positioned to become that partner.”
With the teams experience, seed funding and backers, it seems clear CRC is a company worth keeping an eye on. They are in the game for the ‘Launch the North’ sweepstakes.