Beijing-based startup Xingchen Daohe has secured roughly $14 million to develop the Guanlan satellite constellation, joining a rapidly expanding Chinese commercial space situational awareness sector as firms race to build round-the-clock orbital tracking, collision avoidance, and debris monitoring networks.
The funding round, reported by Chinese media to have brought in nearly 100 million yuan, or about $14.8 million, will finance team-building, development, and deployment for the Guanlan constellation, according to reporting from Spacenews. Founded in May 2024, Xingchen Daohe—also known as Stars Harmony—positions the constellation to offer continuous space-based monitoring for military and civil satellite operators alike, supporting orbit optimization, collision avoidance, and active space traffic management.
The financial backing reflects a broad mix of industry and financial investors, drawing from the Beihang Tianhui incubator, which is affiliated with the aerospace research institution Beihang University, alongside venture firms like Zhenghan Capital, QDGF Ventures, Yarong Capital, Yunhui Capital, and Xinhai Capital, plus state-linked investment vehicle Changsha Chengfa. Shortly after securing the round, Xingchen Daohe signed an agreement to move into Beijing’s Satellite Town
under the municipal government’s South Rockets, North Satellites
industrial policy.
The Gande Constellation and the Growing Orbital Junkyard
The capital influx into Xingchen Daohe coincides with broader national momentum in commercial debris-tracking networks. ATmoto Technology, a private Beijing-based aerospace company, launched the initial satellite of its planned 120-satellite Gande Constellation aboard a Lijian-1 commercial carrier rocket from northwest China, as detailed by the State Council Information Office.
The inaugural satellite launch bridges a recognized gap in China’s commercial space-based debris monitoring architecture. Fan Wei, chief engineer of the Gande Constellation, noted that the milestone marks a key step in space traffic management,
according to state media.
The Gande Constellation is designed for full deployment across three distinct phases ahead of 2030. The opening LX630 phase consists of 14 satellites built jointly by Liangxi Aerospace Technology Group and ATmoto Technology to handle comprehensive targeting across low, medium, and high orbits. The initial satellite carries an onboard artificial intelligence-aided computer to execute routine surveillance, emergency response, and rapid tracking without heavy ground intervention, alongside orbital transfer capabilities for close-range observation.
The urgency behind these commercial networks stems from accumulating orbital hazards. Media reports estimate that space debris pieces larger than one centimeter—sufficiently large to threaten operational spacecraft—have surpassed one million. These fragments travel at approximately 7.9 kilometers per second. Recent incidents underscore the vulnerability of active missions: China’s Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship endured an extended stay at the Tiangong space station after its return capsule viewport window took an impact from orbital debris, while the Shenzhou-17 crew completed two spacewalks in 2024 to repair solar wings damaged by debris strikes.
Competing Ventures and High-Frequency Launch Cadences
Xingchen Daohe and ATmoto Technology operate within a crowded domestic market. Additional players are scaling up parallel constellations and platforms across the sector. Geovis Insighter Technology Co. Ltd., a Zhongke Xingtu subsidiary, went public on the Beijing Stock Exchange in 2025 and announced a 156-satellite SSA constellation with test flights slated for the first half of 2026 and operational deployment in 2027. Kaiyun United developed the Spacemapper platform to host China’s space object catalog alongside plans for a 108-satellite monitoring network. Meanwhile, Qingbo Kongtian, a Tsinghua University spinout, raised tens of millions of yuan in April 2026 for debris cataloging software and schedules an experimental SSA satellite launch for 2026.
These commercial spacecraft rely on increasingly reliable domestic launch vehicles. CAS Space launched a Kinetica-1 Y15 solid-fuel carrier rocket carrying five satellites from the Dongfeng Commercial Space Innovation Pilot Zone, marking the vehicle’s 15th flight. The mission also inaugurated a regular monthly launch schedule for the second half of the year, establishing a high-frequency flight capability for commercial developers.
To date, the Kinetica-1 rocket has served more than 30 domestic and international clients, launching payloads spanning low-cost and high-resolution optical remote sensing, quantum communication, space-based computing, and space situational awareness. Yang Kewei, an executive deputy director at the Commercial Space Research Center under the China Center for Information Industry Development, observed that the current year could witness major milestones in the commercial space economy, including the commencement of commercial operations for low-Earth-orbit constellations.
Strategic Drivers Behind National Space Standards
The capital rushing into commercial space situational awareness is not driven by market forces alone. According to analysis published by the U.S. Air Force’s China Aerospace Studies Institute, the Chinese government maintains a stated goal to localize the two-line element data format used globally for satellite tracking by 2028. Shifting away from reliance on U.S. tracking data allows domestic operators to transition from data consumers to rulemakers in international aerospace fora.
Space situational awareness features prominently in China’s national economic blueprint for 2026 through 2030, the 15th Five-Year Plan, which prioritizes technological breakthroughs in space situation awareness alongside space-based computing, reusable launchers, and formation flying.
