A New Space Economy is Emerging
In 2017, the global space economy accounted for $348 billion, according to Morgan Stanley, which forecasts that it will grow to more than $1.1 trillion by 2040. Peering further into the future, Bank of America Merrill Lynch sees a $2.7 trillion space economy before 2050.
Formerly dominated by government budgets, and mainly the U.S. government’s, the lion’s share is now private, comprising 75% of the total, and increasingly international.
The harrowing bravado of yesteryear’s space race, fondly remembered for the unique odds of survival with which two vying superpowers rocketed objects, monkeys, and men into the skies, has given way, and many lessons learned, to a new space race.
Current trends project that over 6,000 satellites will be deployed in the next decade (though SpaceX alone already has plans to deploy nearly 12,000). Most deployments will be part of large, corporate-owned constellations, but a growing number will also be from small corporations, universities, and other small institutions. Many of these organizations will be acting on newly formed space agendas for the first time, and they’ll be based in hundreds of countries, not just the old handful..
Dramatic growth in space industry participation is driven by lower costs, lower barriers to entry, and increasingly powerful space-based applications deployed on ever smaller and more compact satellites, known as “smallsats.”
These trends have given rise to the term “NewSpace,” denoting the great significance of fresh participants and non-government investment that will propel industry growth at an estimated CAGR of 5.6% between 2018 and 2026, according to Morgan Stanley.
Thanks to NewSpace companies and start-ups, the commercial priorities of agility and efficiency have come to the fore, driving further innovation and development as new offerings come on the market specifically to support faster deliveries, greater flexibility, and more robust collaboration across silos.
Space Impulse aims for leadership in the NewSpace era by applying key advantages of blockchain technology to an online B2B marketplace specifically for the space industry. B2B marketplaces have become a huge part of the modern global economy on the sheer merit of bringing businesses together at an unprecedented scale, covering any distance and permeating all borders and barriers at the speed of light. But the problem of trust and verification remains, and is all the more acute in industries like the space industry that are adding new participants daily.
Unique features of blockchain present a revolutionary opportunity to facilitate trust and verification processes and transactions with an unprecedented level of certainty and confidence at any appropriate or desired level of transparency.
With the blockchain engine at its core, Space Impulse will offer its member companies industry specific tools for finding, evaluating, and engaging relevant suppliers and service providers from introductions to negotiations, and from contracting to securely transacting. Transactions on the platform will run in an Ethereum-protocol “utility token” called Plasma that was developed specifically for the Space Impulse platform. Combining the blockchain engine with these tools will solve key issues of security, verification, coordination, and privacy that bind the highly interdependent exchanges of value along the path from Earth to space. This will result in greater agility and lower costs for both customers and their suppliers.
The Space Impulse vision is a thriving and expanding space industry ecosystem supported by an efficient and robust online marketplace dedicated to the industry.
Find out more at:
- Website: https://www.spaceimpulse.com
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/SpaceImpulseCom
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/space-impulse
References:
- The space industry will be worth nearly $3 trillion in 30 years, Bank of America predicts: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/31/the-space-industry-will-be-worth-nearly-3-trillion-in-30-years-bank-of-america-predicts.html
- Morgan Stanley predicts space industry will triple in size: Here’s how to invest: https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/12/morgan-stanley-how-to-invest-in-1-trillion-space-industry.html
- Relaxed ‘munitions’ rules pave way for aerospace exports: https://bizwest.com/2015/01/23/relaxed-munitions-rules-pave-way-for-aerospace-exports
- State of the Satellite Industry 2018: https://brycetech.com/downloads/SIA_SSIR_2018.pdf
- Space Investment Quarterly Q2 2018: https://www.spaceangels.com/post/space-investment-quarterly-q2-2018
- SpaceX just launched two of its space internet satellites — the first of nearly 12,000: https://www.theverge.com/2018/2/15/17016208/spacex-falcon-9-launch-starlink-microsat-2a-2b-paz-watch-live
- Ethereum project: https://ethereum.org
