Via Satellite archive photo.
On the morning that SATELLITE 2022 officially opens its vast exhibit hall, nine startup entrepreneurs, hailing from all over the world, will take the stage in a battle of lightning-fast business pitches to some of the most powerful investors in the space sector. They will fight for a grand prize that includes a 30-minute conference call with even more investors to guarantee the funding they need to build prototypes, launch services, and take their businesses to the next level.
This is Startup Space – one of the most exciting events to take place at the annual SATELLITE Conference and Exhibition. Established six years ago at SATELLITE 2017, the Startup Space entrepreneur pitch contest is designed to stimulate investment and growth in the industry and to give new entrants a powerful platform at one of the largest global space trade shows. The competition has helped cultivate rapidly-growing space companies such as Astroscale, LeoLabs, Ursa, Orbit Fab, and dozens more who have competed at past events.
Startup Space’s 2022 competition takes place in SATELLITE’s Exhibit Hall theater on Tuesday, March 22 from 11 a.m to 1 p.m. and will include guest judges from powerful investment firms such as Starbridge Venture Capital, Space Fund, MaC Venture Capital, Toyota Ventures, Data Collective Venture Capital, MoonshotX, and the event’s sponsoring firm, Seraphim Capital.
To produce the 2022 competition, SATELLITE teamed up with Rafferty Jackson of Jack Industries, a former Startup Space judge who has participated in the event as far back as the debut competition. Jackson’s goal for Startup Space was to assemble a pool of contestants and judges that more accurately reflects the diversity of the next-generation space industry – both in the technologies presented and the people driving ideas for the business. Startup Space 2022’s line-up features its most diverse and global roster of participants to date. In this feature, we present a preview of the nine competitors who will be battling it out for the grand prize in Washington, D.C. Competitors are listed in order of their appearance at the competition.
Scout, represented by Co-Founder and CEO Eric Ingram
Scout was founded in 2019 to tackle fundamental challenges in spaceflight which are often considered acceptable risks – mainly, how spacecraft see and react to each other. Believing that today’s spacecraft are essentially “blind,” Co-Founder and CEO Eric Ingram and his team at Scout developed the SCOUT-Vision payload system, which aims to provide spacecraft the “eyes” needed to enable better navigation and avoid threats. The company launched its first SCOUT-Vision system in June 2021 and it is currently operating. Ingram is a returning Startup Space competitor and a commercial spaceflight regulatory expert with a tremendous reach in the space industry and a history of building diverse, interdisciplinary teams. He currently serves on the board of the Space Frontier Foundation and is part of Mission:AstroAccess.
AV SpaceTech, represented by CEO Adisesh Yeragudi
AV SpaceTech is building a modular ion space propulsion engine — the Xe-1 — a disc composed of engine layers that can be added or removed to increase or decrease power. The concept image for the Xe-1 is a reminder of the increasing popularity (and capability) of modular-based technologies. The company is also working on its Xe-2 model — a 1.5 kilowatt class propulsion system utilizing xenon to achieve high specific impulse and thrust levels for Geostationary satellite applications. AV SpaceTech CEO Adisesh Yeragudi is Startup Space’s youngest-ever competitor and competition winner. He is a recent Rutgers University graduate, who received the highest score at Startup Space last year at SATELLITE 2021. All Startup Space 2021 competitors were invited to return due to last year’s COVID-19 limitations.
Aquarian Space, represented by CEO Kelly Larson
Aquarian Space is developing a satellite relay network called SOLNET, which aims to allow customers in the commercial and civil space sectors to send and receive high volumes of uninterrupted streaming data quickly and reliably. The types of data the network will process includes: space situation awareness (SSA) for lunar defense; space debris tracking; space weather forecasting; and scientific data from the Moon and Mars. The company will be represented by CEO Kelly Larson, who describes SOLNET as “a major foundational utility for the emerging solar system economy.” Larson has been an entrepreneur for 20 years, including five years in the space industry. She has led Aquarian Space since July 2018.
Tensor Tech, represented by CEO and Co-Founder Thomas Yen
Taiwanese space company Tensor Tech wants to help mankind become an interplanetary species by lowering the cost of space systems – specifically by minimizing costly satellite attitude determination and control systems (ADCS). Unlike traditional satellite attitude control systems based on three- or four-single-axis reaction wheels, Tensor Tech utilizes a spherical motor technology that can replace the traditional ones with one-third of the weight, volume, and power consumption. CEO and Co-Founder Thomas Yen returns to Startup Space 2022 after competing in the virtual competition in 2021. He is a member Taiwan’s National Cheng-Kung University Electrical Machine Lab and an Entrepreneur in Residence for Infinio Capital.
Orbit’s Edge, represented by CTO and Founder, Rick Ward
OrbitsEdge is developing a space-based edge-computing and storage solution utilizing proprietary “frame” architecture to provide data to companies and organizations that heavily rely on Earth observation for time sensitive decision-making. It is aimed at government and national security end-users, as it leverages AI, deduplication, compression, and encryption at the source of the data before transmitting it for additional processing. Orbit’s Edge Co-Founder and CTO Rick Ward is participating in Startup Space on behalf of the company. He is a former U.S. Marine, with extensive experience in developing, producing and conducting research on simulated regolith for NASA and other deep space industries.
ReOrbit, represented by Founder and CEO Sethu Saveda Suvanam
While you may be familiar with reusable launch vehicles and their impact on lowering the cost of access to space, Scandinavian space startup ReOrbit wants to take it a step further by developing reusable space systems, including single and constellation satellites. To do this, ReOrbit is developing a set of technologies to make spacecraft platforms modular and configurable to accommodate different types of payloads, and equipped with built-in autonomous orbital capabilities and a software-defined architecture. Founder and CEO Sethu Saveda Suvanam will be pitching for the company at Startup Space. He was a former subsystems manager for AAC Clyde Space, where he was responsible for business relations, client contacts and developing customer proposals focusing on subsystems for small satellites.
Vyoma Space, represented by Co-Founder Dr. Luisa Buinhas
German startup Vyoma Space wants to revolutionize space object and satellite operations by fully automating the process. The company has developed a software suite that uses intelligent algorithms to process images, assess space traffic, and plan avoidance maneuvers. Most importantly, Vyoma’s software suite will be able to integrate maneuver instructions directly into control room operational tools. The company will be represented by Co-Founder and Space System Engineer Dr. Luisa Buinhas. After graduating from TU Delft in Aerospace Engineering, Dr. Buinhas completed her PhD at the University of the German Federal Armed Forces. During her doctoral degree, she was involved in DLR-led mission studies for satellite constellations and spent six months at MIT as a research intern.
GeoJump, represented by Co-Founder and CTO Isa Fritz
GeoJump wants to give satellite operators a new launch route to geostationary orbit. Using a lunar flyby trajectory and the Sherpa-ES OTV developed by its partner Spaceflight, GeoJump aims to get customers to Geostationary Orbit (GEO) in just two weeks with minimal radiation exposure. The company aims to launch its first payload in the fourth quarter of 2022, with multiple launch opportunities available in 2023. GeoJump Co-Founder and CTO Isa Fritz will be competing in this year’s Startup Space event. Fritz previously worked as a principal space architect at Tesseract and a technical manager at SSL. She describes herself as a passionate space enthusiast that strives to make sci-fi books come to life.
Rogue Space Systems, represented by Founder and CEO Jeromy Grimmett
Based in New Hampshire and founded in 2020, Rogue Space Systems is designing satellite vehicles and subsystems in the form of “orbital robots” to provide on-orbit services to satellite operators These robots, called Orbots, will be able to inspect, monitor, and move satellites using high-definition cameras and sensors. Competing on behalf of Rogue Space Systems is Founder and CEO Jeromy Grimmett, whose career began after high school with the U.S. Army, where he became a Missile Systems & Electronics Specialist on PATRIOT and THAAD. After the Army, he started consulting as a network engineer, where he traveled throughout the world, building and maintaining large scale networks for communications companies, energy producers and manufacturers. He’s attended Harvard University’s School of Extension Studies where he was pursuing his undergraduate and master’s degrees in Government and International Relations.
Learn more about the competition, our judges, and competitors, by visiting the Startup Space website here. All SATELLITE 2022 attendees are welcome to watch the competition.
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