Q Station, an aerospace-focused collaborative workspace in Albuquerque that's supported by the Air Force Research Laboratory and the U.S. Space Force, has named five companies for its 2024 Space Tech Cohort accelerator program.
They are:
- BotFactory Inc. (Long Island, New York): advanced electronics manufacturing enabling fabrication in low earth orbit.
- iBOSS GmbH (Aachen, Germany): space technology company focused on in-space servicing, assembly and manufacturing.
- MicroAvionics Inc. (Somerville, Massachusetts): developing innovation levitation technology using sunlight to enable flight in the mesosphere.
- New Frontier (Seattle): builds advanced, renewably fueled rocket engines.
- Volta Space Technologies (Montreal): developing mission-enabling utility services.
The five firms, through the cohort, will receive free access to workspace at Q Station in Albuquerque's Nob Hill District, business coaching, branding and marketing support and legal services for regulations and intellectual property.
Nearly 40 companies applied to the space technology-focused accelerator program — a record number, according to Randy Trask, the executive director of Q Station.
"We believe these five companies show amazing promise in the new space economy and they align nicely with the innovation areas we are focused on here in Space Valley," Trask said in a statement.
"Space Valley" refers to a large swath of land that stretches from El Paso and Las Cruces in Southern New Mexico, up through Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Los Alamos and into Southern Colorado, with a range of different aerospace-related assets, including Spaceport America, White Sands Missile Range and the Air Force Research Laboratory housed at Kirtland Air Force Base, among others.
A coalition of partners in Space Valley is currently in the running for up to $650 million in federal support dollars. An announcement from the National Science Foundation on the winners in its NSF Regional Innovation Engines program — which the New Mexico coalition is a part of — is expected soon.
Some of the selection criteria for this year's space tech cohort companies included areas of focus for Space Valley partners, which, among others, included space rapid renewable energy generation and on-orbit servicing assembly and maintenance for different types of satellites. A selection team narrowed the nearly 40 applicants down to 10, before conducting interviews with those 10 firms to select the final five.
This is the third year Q-Station has run its space tech cohort accelerator program. Its first cohort included six companies, while last year's program tapped five firms.
