Entrepreneurs seeking to address health challenges in space now have the opportunity to join a new accelerator program launched by Starburst Aerospace, supported by NASA and Microsoft. This accelerator, known as SPACE-H, aims to develop commercial technologies that will enable increased human activity in space and create revenue opportunities in terrestrial markets. Investors focusing on commercial low Earth orbit (LEO) destinations, space tourism, and the cis-lunar economy should take note of this initiative, as it seeks to address the health and performance challenges associated with space tourism, lunar exploration, and missions to Mars.
Elizabeth Reynolds, a managing director at Starburst leading the accelerator, highlighted the need for completely autonomous health and performance monitoring, management, and mitigation systems to accommodate a wider range of human genetics and behaviors in space. Space health data is currently limited to around 650 individuals who have traveled to space, most of whom share similar health profiles due to their selection for the astronaut corps.
Dr. Rihana Bokhari, the deputy chief scientist at the Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH), anticipates that advances in autonomous remote medical care for astronauts will benefit rural healthcare on Earth. The accelerator is looking for companies developing autonomous systems for monitoring and managing astronaut health, compact medical devices, unique sensors, computational biology projects, and innovative pharmaceutical manufacturing techniques.
Juan Carlos López, a former NASA engineer now working at Microsoft in the Azure cloud business, stated that his team is particularly interested in startups using data with predictive artificial intelligence (AI). Participants in the accelerator will have access to free computing on Microsoft’s cloud platform, mentorship, and connections to experts and investors to support their ventures.