Raven Space Systems lands Forbes 30 Under 30 honor, re-entering spotlight after funding news
December 4, 2024 | Startland News Staff
One of Kansas City’s most promising startups of the year has seen its fortunes rocket to the skies over the past three weeks, capped by a high-profile honor in the national media: a spot on the coveted Forbes 30 Under 30 list.
“Building Raven Space Systems has been a very challenging journey and I am so grateful for the support of those around me,” said Ryan Cowdrey, who founded Raven in 2020 alongside Blake Herren to pioneer 3D printing for space exploration.
“Excited for the road ahead,” Cowdrey continued, joining Herren in thanking all the advisors, mentors, coworkers, friends, and family who helped the duo through the years.
Click here to see the Raven spotlight in Forbes.
Raven was lauded in the 2025 Manufacturing and Industry category for 30 Under 30.
The company — a LaunchKC winner in 2023 and one of Startland News’ Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2024 — uses 3D printed, light-weight, high heat-resistance thermoset composite components that can be used for such applications as reentry capsules for on-demand space cargo return.
Tuesday’s Forbes announcement came just weeks after the headline-grabbing Kansas City startup was profiled in the national tech publication TechCrunch and its founders announced a freshly won $1.8 million U.S. defense contract.
Click here to check out the TechCrunch feature on Raven.
ICYMI: KC-built Raven Space Systems awarded $1.8M contract via Air Force’s innovation arm
Fueled by its new funding, Raven is building aerospace-grade composite 3D printing smart factories that will drastically reduce lead times to days, lower the cost of critical components, and usher in a new era of composite manufacturing for the U.S. and its allies, Herren told Startland News previously.
The startup earlier this year received a patent for its Microwave Assisted Deposition (MAD) 3D printing innovation, as well as completing a $2 million pre-seed round.
2024 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
New scholarship opportunities for urban entrepreneurs available in August
The Urban Business Growth Initiative announced it released new scholarship opportunities for urban entrepreneurs in Kansas City beginning in August. Launched in 2013, the initiative offers a variety of programs that fuel urban business growth — whether that be counseling, classes or access to resources. The UBGI helped 92 scholarship award-winners generate $29.5 million in…
In an oversubscribed round, PopBookings raises $1M
Quickly expanding around the nation, the event staffing tech firm PopBookings recently raised a significant round that will push the technology into international markets. Led by CEO Erika Klotz and COO Scott Hanson, the Kansas City-based tech firm recently raised more than $1 million in an oversubscribed round that includes the Missouri Technology Corporation, iSelect…
Sprint Accelerator alum and AI firm Centiment to begin KU Med partnership
New York-based artificial intelligence firm Centiment recently announced that the firm has established a research partnership with the University of Kansas School of Medicine. The neuroscience study will focus on two areas of the brain — the limbic system and the prefrontal cortex — and will scan the brains of people while they consume content, looking for…
Report: Missouri is a top 10 state to launch a business
A recent study dubbed Missouri as one of the top 10 states to start a business. The report was assembled by personal finance website WalletHub and aimed to determine which region held the most fertile grounds for launching an enterprise. Evaluating all 50 states’ business environments, access to resources and business costs, the report ranked…