Global Space Markets Challenge

The Global Space Markets Challenge is a new competition launched by ESA with the operational and technical support of EURISY, a European non-profit association of over 15 national space agencies and other organisations involved in space activities. The Global Space Markets Challenge is also sponsored and supported by some of the major European space-focussed Venture Capital funds including SERAPHIM Capital and Primo Space.

The Challenge’s objective is to select, amongst all applicants, the six Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SME) in the space sector (3 in the upstream and 3 in the downstream area) which submit the most promising and convincing internationalisation plans for their products and/or services.

The Challenge aims at giving visibility to SMEs which have internationalisation ambitions and are developing products and/or services for the upstream or downstream space sector with potential for introduction to Target Markets. A “Target Market” is a country other than a European Union Member State, an ESA Member State or Canada, where the products, applications or services developed by competition applicants could find potential customers, either institutional and/or commercial.

In the context of the increasingly important role played by SMEs, in particular in the European space sector, ESA is striving to encourage and support the growth of these companies so that they have increased chances to have access to finance, information, and contacts, and, more generally, to promote their capabilities and know-how, in Europe and abroad.

With the ESA Global Space Markets Challenge, SMEs now have a novel opportunity to present their plans to introduce their space products and/or services to identified target markets and, for the winners, to benefit from awards and support that help them reach these markets.

The competition is launched under the General Terms and Conditions for participation to the ESA Global Space Markets Challenge. Participation of applicants is subject to acceptance of these General Terms and Conditions and of the documents referenced therein.