Orbit Fab Recognized as 2023 Technology Pioneer by World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum has listed on-orbit spacecraft refueling company Orbit Fab as one of its 100 most promising 2023 Technology Pioneers. These are innovative companies that are tackling issues such as sustainability, climate change, and healthcare. The World Economic Forum is an international organization focused on public-private cooperation, best known for its annual meetings in Davos, Switzerland.
“We’re excited to welcome Orbit Fab to our 2023 cohort of Technology Pioneers,” Verena Kuhn, Head of Innovator Communities at the World Economic Forum (WEF), said in a press release. “Orbit Fab and its fellow pioneers are at the forefront of innovation and disruption needed to help us solve the world’s most pressing issues. We look forward to their contribution to the Forum’s content work that brings together public and private sectors to tackle these global issues.”
Being recognized by the prestigious World Economic Forum is a very big deal for Orbit Fab, whose trademarked slogan is, “gas stations in space.”
“Orbit Fab is thrilled to be part of this select group of tech leaders across the world that are making a difference in so many ways,” Adam Harris, the company’s Chief Commercial Officer, told SpaceRef. “Companies focused on a broad range of missions in space — from cleaning up and removing orbital space debris to manufacturing in space — all need fuel in space to keep their missions running. Orbit Fab already has contracts with many of these innovators for our refueling depots and shuttles. We look forward to collaborating with many of our fellow tech pioneers in the months and years ahead.”
The opportunity for such collaborations is a big part of being a WEF Technology Pioneer. Thanks to its inclusion, Orbit Fab CEO Daniel Faber has been invited to work with global leaders through the WEF to help address key industry and societal issues. Technology Pioneers are also included in WEF events and discussions throughout the year.
Orbit Fab has made significant progress in its quest to refuel satellites and other spacecraft in orbit. For instance, its RAFTI (Rapid Attachable Fluid Transfer Interface) refueling interface is designed to dock with spacecraft without requiring help from a robotic arm. Meanwhile, Orbit Fab has already completed two successful missions to orbit, Harris explained. One supported the International Space Station, and the other was the June 2021 launch of the company’s first refueling depot, Tenzing. The company has also booked four “fuel shuttle missions” set to launch over the next three years, Harris added. They include three defense contracts valued at $21 million that will allow the US government to refuel, reuse, and maneuver spacecraft around debris, theaters of military engagement, and adversarial threats. “The trio of government missions feature SpaceWERX [the Space Force agency that fosters technological innovation]-funded rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO) scheduled for early 2024, a four year Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) contract to replenish Space Force satellites with hydrazine in GEO, and a STRATFI [Strategic Funding Increase] initiative to develop docking depots,” Harris told SpaceRef. “Orbit Fab also inked a major commercial GEO-orbit refueling agreement last year to replenish Astroscale’s fleet of Life Extension In-Orbit (LEXI™) service vehicles, which will feature built-in RAFTI refueling interfaces.”
