Intuitive Machines bets the moon could be big business • TechCrunch

This deep into 2022, you might think that SPAC deals were over, done, dusted, forgotten. And yet, TechCrunch recently reported that Intuitive Machines is pursuing a SPAC-led debut to the public markets as we speak.

You might not be familiar with the company if you don’t keep close tabs on the space business. Let me catch us all up.

Intuitive Machines is combining with Inflection Point Acquisition Corp. in a deal that will see the moon-focused company valued at $1.15 billion in equity terms and $815 million when we consider its anticipated enterprise value.

The gap between the two is the company’s anticipated post-combination cash on hand; to reassure possible investors that that figure will not evaporate through redemptions as the combination date nears, Intuitive Machines has secured $55 million of what it calls “committed capital,” or funds that are pledged to non-redemption agreements or external funding (PIPE) from “entities affiliated” with the SPAC in question.

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Intuitive Machines will hit the public markets as a unicorn if things go as planned. A unicorn in space? Given the reported value of SpaceX, Intuitive Machines won’t be the first. But it’s also one of a sector that isn’t hyper dense, like, say, enterprise software.