Dcubed and the EIC Accelerator: Printing Solar Arrays in Orbit

Dcubed, formerly Deployables Cubed GmbH, is a Munich company that makes release mechanisms and deployable hardware for small satellites and is developing in-space manufacturing: rolling out an ultrathin solar blanket in orbit while hardening a support structure onto it on the spot, so that solar arrays are no longer limited by what fits in a rocket fairing. Its EIC Accelerator project, ISM4Europe, receives an EU contribution of €2,499,999 and runs from December 2024 to November 2026, according to CORDIS. It aims to de-risk the technology through progressive in-orbit demonstrations and move towards flight-qualified arrays in the multi-kilowatt class.

The first-year report records a 43% rise in headcount, three new patent applications, and a design change from a purely photopolymer structure to a hybrid with carbon-fibre substrates. It also reports that "a supply risk related to the availability of suitable solar cells materialised", and that the market entry point was moved from 500-watt to 2-kilowatt arrays, according to CORDIS. Environmental tests such as thermal cycling were defined but not yet run. Dcubed's first in-space manufacturing satellite, ARAQYS-D1, meant to build a 60-centimetre boom in orbit, launched on a Falcon 9 on 11 January 2026, according to Gunter's Space Page. Dcubed has not published its outcome.

Where Dcubed Stands Now

Dcubed's established hardware keeps it growing. It closed an oversubscribed Series A with eight investors in August 2024 and opened a US office, according to Dcubed. In November 2025 Intuitive Machines picked it to supply a conventional 2-kilowatt deployable solar array for a data-network satellite due in 2026, according to Dcubed. It then launched the ARAQYS brand, planning ARAQYS-D2, a 1-metre printed array on Exotrail's SpaceVan, and ARAQYS-D3, a 2-kilowatt in-space manufactured array for 2027, which in March 2026 signed up power-beaming partners, according to Dcubed.

The Technology: Building the Frame After Launch

Conventional solar arrays are folded for launch and must survive its vibration, which limits their size, the EIC report says. Dcubed's approach rolls out a thin solar blanket in orbit and 3D-prints its back structure onto it during roll-out. In March 2024 it announced a first in-orbit demonstration of more than 100 watts under ESA's ScaleUp programme, "scheduled for launch in February 2025", according to Dcubed. The first manufacturing flight launched in January 2026.

What the EIC Award Promised, and What the Record Shows

The project runs to November 2026, so it is too early to judge it. The first demonstration is in orbit but unreported, the architecture has been redesigned, and the multi-kilowatt demonstration falls in 2027, after the project. The solar cell supply problem shows the European dependence the project set out to reduce.

1. First ISM demonstration launchedLaunchedJanuary 2026.
2. In-orbit result publishedNot publicNo announcement.
3. Environmental qualificationDefinedNot yet executed.
4. Multi-kW flight array2027 planARAQYS-D3.

The Money

The Series A amount and investors were not disclosed. The award was blended finance; no EIC Fund investment has been announced. Dcubed says its actuator business provides "financial flexibility" for the expansion into in-space power.

What Cannot Be Checked

Why Europe Should Care

Satellites need more power, and Europe depends on non-European suppliers for solar arrays and cells, the EIC report says. A European in-space manufacturing capability would be a genuine lead. Dcubed is also expanding in the US, which it calls the world's largest space market.

The Verdict

Dcubed and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.