---
type: source
title: "Interlune $5M SAFE Raise and $500M+ Contracts — Milestone-Gated Development Path Through 2029"
author: "National Today / InsightsWire / SpaceVoyaging"
url: https://nationaltoday.com/us/wa/seattle/news/2026/01/29/interlune-secures-5m-to-advance-lunar-mining-for-helium-3/
date: 2026-01-29
domain: space-development
secondary_domains: []
format: article
status: enrichment
priority: medium
tags: [interlune, helium-3, lunar-isru, funding, contracts, milestone-gated, capital-formation]
flagged_for_rio: ["Interlune's milestone-gated financing structure with $500M+ contracts — capital formation dynamics for first commercial lunar resource company"]
processed_by: astra
processed_date: 2026-03-19
enrichments_applied: ["falling launch costs paradoxically both enable and threaten in-space resource utilization by making infrastructure affordable while competing with the end product.md", "space resource rights are emerging through national legislation creating de facto international law without international agreement.md"]
extraction_model: "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5"
---

## Content

Interlune raised $5M via SAFE (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) in January 2026 to support:
- Griffin-1 July 2026 multispectral camera preparation
- Excavator phase completion (mid-2026)
- Prospect Moon 2027 mission preparation

**Contract portfolio:**
- Bluefors: up to 10,000 liters/year, 2028-2037, ~$200-300M/year at current prices
- Maybell Quantum: thousands of liters, 2029-2035
- U.S. DOE: 3 liters by April 2029 (first government purchase of a space-extracted resource)
- U.S. Air Force (AFWERX): terrestrial He-3 extraction contract
- Total: $500M+ in purchase orders and government contracts
- Rob Meyerson (CEO): "Scaling requires delivering to Earth; this amount is too large to return to Earth" (about Bluefors volume)

**Milestone gate structure:**
1. Excavator phase → mid-2026 results → follow-on funding decision
2. Griffin-1 July 2026 → He-3 concentration mapping → Prospect Moon site selection
3. Prospect Moon 2027 → extraction demo → pilot plant go/no-go
4. Pilot plant 2029 → commercial deliveries begin

The $5M raise is modest relative to $500M+ in contracts — suggests Series A is contingent on milestone outcomes, not upfront committed capital. Early-stage company with large contracted demand but proving out technology.

## Agent Notes

**Why this matters:** The financing structure reveals Interlune's risk profile: demand-confirmed, technology-gating. The $5M SAFE vs. $500M contracts ratio shows investors are milestone-gating rather than capital-racing. This is appropriate given the technology uncertainty, but it also means any milestone failure (excavator, Griffin-1, Prospect Moon) could delay Series A and compress the timeline.

**What surprised me:** The overall contract portfolio is larger than prior session's "$300M Bluefors" figure suggested — $500M+ total with multiple independent buyers. The DOE contract is particularly notable: first-ever government purchase of a space-extracted resource, even if only 3 liters. The symbolic significance exceeds the commercial significance at 3 liters.

**What I expected but didn't find:** Series A terms or size. If the excavator mid-2026 milestone is positive, what's the expected raise? And who leads — VCs, strategics, government grants?

**KB connections:**
- [[Varda Space Industries validates commercial space manufacturing...]] — parallel structure: both are milestone-gated, both have confirmed customers before extraction at scale, both are early-stage relative to their stated market
- Pattern 6 (commercial companies hedging primary thesis with terrestrial development): AFWERX terrestrial He-3 extraction contract is Interlune hedging lunar path with terrestrial extraction capability

**Extraction hints:** Flag for Rio — the milestone-gated financing structure with $500M+ in confirmed demand is a novel capital formation pattern for resource extraction companies. The DOE purchase as first-ever government purchase of a space-extracted resource has symbolic importance beyond its volume.

**Context:** Interlune was founded in 2022 by former Blue Origin CEO Rob Meyerson. Total raised to date: ~$18M seed + $5M SAFE = ~$23M. This is extremely capital-efficient relative to the $500M+ demand pipeline — suggesting either exceptional fundraising discipline or difficulty raising at higher valuations given technology uncertainty.

## Curator Notes

PRIMARY CONNECTION: Pattern 6 (commercial companies hedging primary thesis) — Interlune's AFWERX terrestrial extraction contract is hedging behavior alongside lunar extraction development.

WHY ARCHIVED: The $500M+ contracts vs. $23M raised ratio is a distinctive capital formation pattern worth capturing. Rio should evaluate what this milestone-gated structure means for space resource company investment thesis.

EXTRACTION HINT: Flag primarily for Rio — capital formation dynamics. For space domain, extract the sequential milestone structure as evidence that commercial lunar resource development is being staged appropriately, not as a single big bet. The DOE "first purchase of space-extracted resource" deserves its own claim given the symbolic governance significance.


## Key Facts
- Interlune raised $5M via SAFE in January 2026
- Interlune total funding to date: ~$23M ($18M seed + $5M SAFE)
- Bluefors contract: up to 10,000 liters/year He-3, 2028-2037, estimated $200-300M/year at current prices
- Maybell Quantum contract: thousands of liters He-3, 2029-2035
- U.S. DOE contract: 3 liters He-3 by April 2029, first government purchase of space-extracted resource
- U.S. Air Force AFWERX: terrestrial He-3 extraction contract
- Total Interlune contract portfolio: $500M+
- Griffin-1 mission: July 2026, multispectral camera for He-3 concentration mapping
- Excavator phase completion: mid-2026
- Prospect Moon mission: 2027, extraction demonstration
- Pilot plant target: 2029, commercial deliveries begin
- Rob Meyerson quote: 'Scaling requires delivering to Earth; this amount is too large to return to Earth' (about Bluefors volume)
