A major draw for investment in the space sector is the rapid expansion of data collected and transmitted by satellites, which could revolutionize insights, efficiency, and innovation across finance and numerous other industries.
“Almost every industry on Earth—whether insurance, pharmaceuticals, banking, investing, or tourism—can benefit from space technology,” said Raphael Roettgen, Founder of E2MC Ventures, a venture capital firm specializing in early-stage space ventures.
Roettgen compares the current surge in space infrastructure interest to the early days of the internet in the 1990s or the state of artificial intelligence (AI) a decade ago. At those times, few anticipated how these technologies would permeate every aspect of life and profoundly alter the global economy.
“When I first delved into AI and pursued a Master’s degree in it ten years ago, many of my colleagues considered it intellectually interesting but impractical. Now, it’s ubiquitous,” Roettgen noted.
Maureen Haverty, a former nuclear engineer and now a Principal at Seraphim Space, a specialized VC firm, believes that the significance of space technology is often underestimated or misunderstood.
“Space-derived data will be so seamlessly integrated into various products and services that many people won’t even realize its origin,” she said.
Emerging Opportunities
The drastic reduction in space launch costs is paving the way for groundbreaking possibilities beyond Earth. “It will make feasible things that are currently prohibitively expensive, such as space robotics and space-based solar power,” Haverty explained. It will also facilitate in-orbit servicing and the deployment of larger, more capable satellites.
“Larger satellites can handle more tasks, offer increased bandwidth for communications, have enhanced imaging capabilities, and possess greater maneuverability. This expands our options significantly,” she added. Investment in the beyond-Earth sector saw a substantial rise in 2023, according to Seraphim. One exciting prospect is “microgravity on demand,” which has researchers, scientists, and deep-tech entrepreneurs buzzing.
Roettgen, also Co-founder of Prometheus Life Technologies—a space biotech startup—aims to harness the fact that cells grown in microgravity organize similarly to their in-body growth patterns. This could advance organoid production for drug discovery, regenerative medicine, and potentially bioprinting entire organs.
Microgravity also enables the unique binding and mixing of materials that is impossible on Earth, Roettgen said. “This could lead to the development of superior semiconductors and optical fibers, potentially building more power-efficient data centers. Given the high power consumption of data centers, this could significantly reduce their carbon footprint.”
