Inside Italian defence tech (2026)
Jul 17
Back to Companies
Harwell, United KingdomLos Angeles, United StatesHarwell, United KingdomLos Angeles, United States
Magdrive
Builds metal-propellant electric plasma thrusters for satellite manoeuvring, rendezvous operations and in-space logistics.
Oxford, United Kingdom0 open positionsWebsite
Space & Satellites
Products & Solutions
Rogue
Rogue is Magdrive's compact electric plasma thruster for satellites and spacecraft in low Earth orbit and deep-space missions. It uses solid metal propellant and recharged internal energy to create high-energy plasma, with the full system designed to fit inside a 2U cubesat form factor. Magdrive lists Rogue at up to 10 mN thrust, 1800 to 3500 s specific impulse and more than 3 kNs total impulse.
Warlock
Warlock is the higher-capability version of Magdrive's small-spacecraft thruster architecture. It uses the same metal propellant and pulsed-power approach as Rogue, with higher stored energy and up to 50 mN thrust. Magdrive positions Warlock for missions that need more impulse while keeping the same compact full-system mass class.
SuperMagdrive
SuperMagdrive is the larger member of Magdrive's propulsion family. It uses an advanced pulsed-power system to send multi-kA, multi-MW current pulses to the plasma injector, vaporising solid metal propellant and accelerating the plasma exhaust through a magnetic chamber. Magdrive lists SuperMagdrive at more than 1 N thrust and 1 MNs total impulse.
About
Magdrive builds high-thrust electric plasma propulsion systems for satellites and spacecraft. Founded in 2020 by Mark Stokes and Dr Thomas Clayson, the company operates from Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire with operations in Los Angeles.
Offices
Harwell, United KingdomLos Angeles, United StatesBacked by
RedalpineBalerionFounders FundAlumni VenturesOutsized Ventures7percent VenturesEntrepreneur First
Customers & Partners
D-OrbitESA MarketplaceUK Space AgencyAirbus Defence and Space UKPlexal
Timeline
2026-02
Completed the Going Rogue in-orbit demonstration, including commissioning and firing tests of two Rogue-class thrusters.
2025-06
Launched the Going Rogue in-orbit demonstration mission on SpaceX Transporter-14, hosted by D-Orbit's ION spacecraft.
2025-02
Closed a $10.5 million funding round led by Redalpine, with participation from Balerion, Founders Fund, Alumni Ventures, Outsized Ventures, 7percent Ventures and Entrepreneur First.
2024-11
Graduated from Airbus' first space accelerator, run by Airbus Defence and Space UK and Plexal.
2020
Founded by CEO Mark Stokes and CTO Dr Thomas Clayson to develop electric plasma propulsion for spacecraft.
Open Positions (0)
No positions available
Magdrive doesn't have any open positions at the moment.
Magdrive
Builds metal-propellant electric plasma thrusters for satellite manoeuvring, rendezvous operations and in-space logistics.
Oxford, United Kingdom0 open positionsWebsite
Space & Satellites
Products & Solutions
Rogue
Rogue is Magdrive's compact electric plasma thruster for satellites and spacecraft in low Earth orbit and deep-space missions. It uses solid metal propellant and recharged internal energy to create high-energy plasma, with the full system designed to fit inside a 2U cubesat form factor. Magdrive lists Rogue at up to 10 mN thrust, 1800 to 3500 s specific impulse and more than 3 kNs total impulse.
Warlock
Warlock is the higher-capability version of Magdrive's small-spacecraft thruster architecture. It uses the same metal propellant and pulsed-power approach as Rogue, with higher stored energy and up to 50 mN thrust. Magdrive positions Warlock for missions that need more impulse while keeping the same compact full-system mass class.
SuperMagdrive
SuperMagdrive is the larger member of Magdrive's propulsion family. It uses an advanced pulsed-power system to send multi-kA, multi-MW current pulses to the plasma injector, vaporising solid metal propellant and accelerating the plasma exhaust through a magnetic chamber. Magdrive lists SuperMagdrive at more than 1 N thrust and 1 MNs total impulse.
Open Positions (0)
No positions available
Magdrive doesn't have any open positions at the moment.
About
Magdrive builds high-thrust electric plasma propulsion systems for satellites and spacecraft. Founded in 2020 by Mark Stokes and Dr Thomas Clayson, the company operates from Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire with operations in Los Angeles.
Offices
Harwell, United KingdomLos Angeles, United StatesBacked by
RedalpineBalerionFounders FundAlumni VenturesOutsized Ventures7percent VenturesEntrepreneur First
Customers & Partners
D-OrbitESA MarketplaceUK Space AgencyAirbus Defence and Space UKPlexal
Timeline
2026-02
Completed the Going Rogue in-orbit demonstration, including commissioning and firing tests of two Rogue-class thrusters.
2025-06
Launched the Going Rogue in-orbit demonstration mission on SpaceX Transporter-14, hosted by D-Orbit's ION spacecraft.
2025-02
Closed a $10.5 million funding round led by Redalpine, with participation from Balerion, Founders Fund, Alumni Ventures, Outsized Ventures, 7percent Ventures and Entrepreneur First.
2024-11
Graduated from Airbus' first space accelerator, run by Airbus Defence and Space UK and Plexal.
2020
Founded by CEO Mark Stokes and CTO Dr Thomas Clayson to develop electric plasma propulsion for spacecraft.
Latest reports
Explore more
Explore more
Similar Companies
Aerospacelab
Designs, manufactures and operates end-to-end satellite systems, with a vertically integrated platform family built for constellation-scale production.
5 roles
Blackshark.ai
Builds AI infrastructure that converts satellite and aerial imagery into 3D world models and operational intelligence for defence simulation, autonomous systems and disaster response.
4 roles
R
Rocket Factory Augsburg
Develops the RFA ONE small launch vehicle and Redshift orbital transfer vehicle to deliver satellites to any orbit from European spaceports.
4 roles
VAKE
Maritime intelligence platform that uses machine learning on Sentinel-2, SAR and AIS data to detect, identify and track dark vessels for governments and offshore asset owners. KSAT acquired a 70% majority stake in 2024 to scale the platform for national maritime situational awareness.
Magdrive owns its name, logo and all referenced trademarks — used here for identification only. Claim, update or remove this profile.