After the Funding Round: Durham-based Extellis Sets Its Sights On Orbit After $6.8 Million Seed Round

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A satellite company born inside Duke University is ready to rethink how we take images of the world.

Extellis, a startup based in Durham, North Carolina, recently secured a seed round of $6.8 million to grow its high-volume, all-weather satellite imaging company that delivers reliable Earth observation data at an industrial scale.

The startup stayed local to find its lead investor, which it found in  Raleigh, North Carolina-based Oval Park Capital.

Other investors in the round include New Industry VC, Front Porch Venture Partners, First Star Ventures, EGB Capital, Duke Capital Partners, and Bluelake, according to Crunchbase.

Michael Boyarsky, Co-founder and CEO at Extellis, earned his PhD in electrical and computer engineering at Duke and served as a research scientist at the university before launching the startup.

Following the announcement of the seed funding round, Boyarsky answered Hypepotamus’ questions about the launch of the startup, the first attempt at fundraising, and what it is like building a satellite startup in North Carolina.

Meet Boyarsky through this Q&A:

Question: Take us back to the start of Extellis. What was missing in the satellite imaging space?

Answer: “There had been lots of advancement and adoption of optical satellite imagery, but less in synthetic aperture radar (SAR). The optical systems have major gaps in coverage, because they can't see at night or through clouds, leaving a major opportunity for SAR to provide unparalleled reliability. Still, SAR systems were highly limited by their antenna/sensor hardware, only able to operate for at most 2% of the time before overheating and running out of power. With limited uptime comes limited volume, resulting in de facto exclusivity towards defense departments, since commercial customers couldn't afford SAR prices.”

Question: How was the process of bringing the technology / patented antennas out of Duke? How long was the process to stand up the independent company?

Answer: “I had the chance to start working with Duke's New Ventures program early last year. They provided great guidance on how and when to set up my company and connected me with good options for legal counsel. Once we'd chosen when to incorporate, the incorporation process was fast; selecting legal counsel and incorporating the company took around 4-6 weeks. After incorporation, I started negotiating a license to our patents from Duke and concluded that process earlier this year.”

Question: How was the fundraising process? How did you first connect with Oval Park Capital?

Answer: “The fundraising process is interesting, because you've made these detailed plans, but then you have to spend lots of time pitching them before you can really begin executing on them in earnest (since this was our first fundraise). I'm sure I'm not unique in wishing that the process had been a bit faster, but I'm really happy with where things landed. I first connected to Oval Park through a mutual colleague (who later joined Extellis) and I'm thrilled to have such a great partner as lead investor!”

Question: How is it building this type of company in North Carolina?

Answer: “I think North Carolina offers a lot - it's a great area with major universities, a relatively low cost of living, and it's growing. Though there haven't been as many space companies here, I hope to be a part of growing the hardware scene in this area!”

Question: Are any of your antennas currently in orbit?

Answer: “Not yet! Getting our first satellite on orbit is the major milestone for our seed round.”

Question: Following the funding round, what's on the horizon for Extellis?

Answer: “The biggest three priorities right now are to grow our team, continue preparing for our orbital demonstration, and to engage with customers. It's an exciting time!”