Two Bay Area space startups selected for Amazon Web Services accelerator

Two Bay Area space tech startups were selected to participate in Amazon's cloud computing accelerator program.

The accelerator, run by Amazon Web Services, picked 14 startups from around the world for its third annual space-focused program which will run for four weeks in May, followed by an in-person demo day in July in San Francisco.

In a blog post announcing this year's program, AWS said it was looking for startups working on "sustainability for space and sustainability from space," as well as startups "with the highest potential to make a global impact, those who are most able to capture value from the program, and those with the best fit for AWS."

The two local startups selected for AWS's 2023 Space Accelerator program are:

Companies that are accepted into the program get access to potential customers and investors, as well as mentors with technical and space industry expertise. They also receive up to $100,000-worth of AWS credits.

AWS received hundreds of applications this year, it said in a blog post.

Venture capital investments in space startups dropped 50% last year compared to 2021, Reuters reported on Monday.

And tough market conditions were recently exacerbated by the sudden bankruptcy of Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit, which announced in March that it was implementing mass layoffs and ceasing operations after it failed to line up additional funding.

In the Bay Area, there are several space tech startups developing satellites and space-related technology for uses like telecommunications and imaging. They include Astranis Space Technologies Corp., Orbital Sidekick, Array Labs, Capella Space and Muon Space.