Rocket Lab Electron/Neutron rockets

Rocket Lab was founded in 2006 in Auckland, New Zealand, by engineer Peter Beck. The brand originally gained fame as the first private company in the Southern Hemisphere to reach space with its Ātea-1 sounding rocket in 2009. To better serve major customers like NASA and the U.S. Space Force, the company strategically transitioned to become a U.S. entity in 2013, establishing its global headquarters in California.

Today, manufacturing is distributed across several key locations. Primary assembly of the Electron rocket engines and avionics occurs in Long Beach, California, while composite structures and components are produced in Maryland and New Mexico in the United States, as well as in Auckland and Warkworth, New Zealand. The company also maintains a manufacturing presence in Canada through its subsidiaries specializing in satellite components.

In 2021, the company went public on the Nasdaq (RKLB). As of 2026, it operates under a holding company structure as Rocket Lab Corporation. While it is a publicly traded entity owned by a mix of institutional and retail investors, founder Sir Peter Beck remains a significant individual stakeholder and serves as the primary leader of the organization.