PLD SPACE RAISES 180 MILLION IN MARCH AND LEADS A NEW WAVE OF FUNDING AMONG STARTUPS IN THE SOUTH SUMMIT ECOSYSTEM
Arkadia Space, Webel and Amelia also announced deals in March, while Wheel the World closed a Series A round in February to strengthen its expansion and AI capabilities
PLD Space, Webel, Arkadia Space, Wheel the World and Amelia Hub have been finalists in the South Summit Startup Competition
Madrid, April 11, 2026 - Spanish startup PLD Space has closed a €180 million funding round, leading a new wave of investment in startups from the South Summit ecosystem. The deal, announced on March 4, 2026, was led by Mitsubishi and also included public-sector participation. The funding aims to strengthen its position as a European alternative in the space sector and to advance the industrialization of its Miura rockets. PLD Space was a finalist in the 2015 South Summit Startup Competition, an initiative co-organized with IE University.
Also in March, Webel, a finalist in the 2024 Startup Competition, announced the closing of a €4.3 million pre-Series A round, disclosed on March 25, 2026, with which it seeks to evolve into a comprehensive home services platform and accelerate its growth in Europe. Just one day later, on March 26, 2026, another South Summit finalist, in this case from 2024, Arkadia Space, made public a €14.5 million funding round from European investors to boost the industrial production of green fuel for satellites and expand its testing capabilities. Meanwhile, Amelia Hub, a 2025 finalist, also announced a €5 million round to support its international rollout and the development of new solutions.
In February, Wheel the World, a 2021 finalist, announced on February 25, 2026, the closing of an $11 million Series A round aimed at expanding its presence in the United States and Europe, as well as developing new AI-based capabilities from its verified accessibility database.
The companies mentioned are part of the South Summit startup ecosystem, which makes it possible to place these transactions within the context of a global community with access to capital at different growth stages. By the end of 2025, the more than 1,500 South Summit finalist startups had surpassed €20.5 billion in cumulative funding over fourteen years, with a survival rate of over 85%.
Among these latest rounds are technology-based projects in sectors such as space, like PLD Space and Arkadia Space, alongside platform models with international ambitions, such as Webel and Amelia Hub. At the same time, artificial intelligence is being incorporated in some cases as an additional lever for development and scaling, as seen with Wheel the World.
Taken together, the rounds announced between February and March reinforce the visibility of startups linked to the South Summit ecosystem in a context where the market continues to reward projects with international ambition, a strong technological foundation, and execution capacity.
About South Summit
South Summit is the global platform that brings together all the players in the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem to foster business opportunities among them. Its flagship event is South Summit Madrid, co-organized by IE University, which throughout its previous fourteen editions has welcomed more than 42,500 startups, while its Startup Competition has produced more than 1,500 finalist startups, with an 85% survival rate and over $20.5 billion in funding raised.
After visiting Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Chile and Argentina, South Summit held its fourth edition in Brazil, also co-organized by IE University, in April 2025. This latest edition brought together more than 23,000 attendees from 62 countries, including more than 3,000 startups, 800 speakers, and 900 investors with portfolios valued at $215 billion.