A startup called Besxar is pioneering an ambitious approach to semiconductor manufacturing by building orbital factories aboard SpaceX rockets. The company plans to prototype its space-based chip production facilities across a dozen flights, leveraging the unique advantages of the space environment to create advanced semiconductor components.
Founded by former OpenAI staffer Ashley Pilipiszyn, Besxar has secured nearly $14 million in funding, including a $9 million seed round led by Dauntless Ventures and Overture VC. The company’s strategy capitalizes on an unusual opportunity: SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket boosters, which made 163 round-trips last year and have already flown more than 100 times this year, represent the most frequently reused vehicles traveling to and from space.
Pilipiszyn first approached SpaceX three years ago to discuss the concept, eventually securing an agreement to carry experimental semiconductor manufacturing equipment on the rocket boosters. The company takes its name from beskar, the fictional metal used to make Mandalorian armor in Star Wars, reflecting its ambition to create exceptionally durable and high-quality products.
Besxar’s approach addresses one of the most challenging aspects of terrestrial chip manufacturing: the need for ultra-clean environments. On Earth, semiconductor fabrication facilities require expensive pressurized clean rooms to eliminate even microscopic dust and contaminants that could damage chips during production. By manufacturing in the vacuum of space, Besxar aims to bypass these costly infrastructure requirements entirely, working with physics rather than against it.
The company achieved its first milestone in July 2026 when its initial two “fabships” flew on a Starlink mission. These small canisters were designed to test whether semiconductor materials could survive launch, remain protected from contamination, and be exposed to the vacuum of space. Despite a malfunction in the flight data system of one canister, the mission succeeded in its primary objectives. The flown samples showed the least amount of particulate matter compared to terrestrial wafers, a promising result for future scaling efforts.
Over the next two years, Besxar expects to iterate on its technology, gradually advancing from basic tests to more complex manufacturing processes. The progression includes heating wafers, then depositing one material, then two materials, and continuing to build complexity. The ultimate goal extends beyond the Falcon 9 boosters to flying larger fabrication facilities aboard SpaceX’s Starship, the next-generation rocket currently under development.
Once operational, Besxar plans to supply leading chipmakers with wafers used to manufacture power regulation chips, components critical for data centers, robots, and electric vehicles. The company envisions scaling production from hundreds to thousands of wafers per fabrication unit, though this expansion depends heavily on the availability of affordable rocket launches.
Besxar is not alone in pursuing space-based semiconductor manufacturing. Companies like United Semiconductors and Space Forge are also working on similar concepts. However, all face the same fundamental challenge: the limited capacity to return meaningful volumes of product to Earth. Success in this emerging industry depends on companies like SpaceX making Starship operational, or competitors such as Rocket Lab and Stoke Space successfully launching their own next-generation rockets to create a reliable and affordable transportation infrastructure for space manufacturing.
