The space industry is set to provide big profit and business making opportunities for the private sector globally, the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh heard on Wednesday.
The industry could be worth more than $1 trillion by 2040 according to Morgan Stanley, while The Space Foundation put its value at $447 billion in 2020.
And the investment is set to come from the private sector as improvements in technology make space more accessible.
"The impact on humanity over the next decade is going to be enormous," said Daniel Goldin, a former Nasa administrator and founder of US-based innovation advisory company Cold Canyon AI.
"The profit making and business making during this transition for those that understand will be wonderful. Within a decade it is going to be all commercial services and the government will be stepping out.
"The technology is maturing to the point that private capital can now take over as the risk of technology development isn’t there."
A public-private partnership model has been undertaken by space agencies worldwide, as more private space companies emerge to offer their services to governments.
Nasa has been leading the way in this through its partnership with Elon Musk's private rocket company SpaceX, which now sends Nasa astronauts to the International Space Station.
Saudi Arabia's Future Investment Initiative 2022 - in pictures
SpaceX has also been providing Starlink — a network of about 3,000 low-orbit satellites designed to deliver high-speed internet services to the world, particularly remote and rural locations.
It has been particularly useful for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia, as a key means of communication used by military forces in areas that don’t otherwise have cellular service.
However, Mr Musk has bemoaned on Twitter that "Starlink is still losing money & other companies are getting billions of taxpayer $".
Anousheh Ansari, chief executive of the XPRIZE Foundation and the first Muslim woman in space, said the industry is changing from the days when it was only governments that had programmes to access space.
"The problem was access was very expensive — people had great ideas on what to do when they get to space but it was expensive to get their payload there," she said.
"Over the past few decades, the cost of access has dropped and it will continue to drop. It’s like the early days of the internet with new browsers coming through and flourishing."
She added that there are lots of opportunities for low-orbit businesses, and highlighted satellite imagery as one which has developed.
Next will be moving industries into orbit, such as manufacturing, harvesting sustainable energy from the sun, and also data centres given the cold temperatures, she said.
"In 14 years we will have privatised space stations and orbiting stations that are doing activities such as research and eventually manufacturing," she said. "We will also have the beginnings of a permanent base on the moon and early stage new businesses looking at how to extract the resources of the moon. Also a base for launching towards Mars."
Governments will be doing the core technology development, while all services will be coming from private capital, according to Mr Goldin.
"Governments will just be doing the research and private capital will create the incredible wealth," he said.
In the UAE, figures from 2019 show the country's investments in space exceeded Dh22bn ($5.99bn), with 57 space-related establishments operating in the country helping create 1,500 jobs.
Since the launch of the UAE’s Mars mission in 2020, more private companies have set up in the Emirates.
The UAE Space Agency has launched a Dh3bn national investment and development fund for the space sector, with private companies to benefit most.
Last month, the agency launched a survey to measure how the space sector has contributed to the national economy.
Scorecard
Scotland 220
K Coetzer 95, J Siddique 3-49, R Mustafa 3-35
UAE 224-3 in 43,5 overs
C Suri 67, B Hameed 63 not out
KEY DEVELOPMENTS IN MARITIME DISPUTE
2000: Israel withdraws from Lebanon after nearly 30 years without an officially demarcated border. The UN establishes the Blue Line to act as the frontier.
2007: Lebanon and Cyprus define their respective exclusive economic zones to facilitate oil and gas exploration. Israel uses this to define its EEZ with Cyprus
2011: Lebanon disputes Israeli-proposed line and submits documents to UN showing different EEZ. Cyprus offers to mediate without much progress.
2018: Lebanon signs first offshore oil and gas licencing deal with consortium of France’s Total, Italy’s Eni and Russia’s Novatek.
2018-2019: US seeks to mediate between Israel and Lebanon to prevent clashes over oil and gas resources.
More coverage from the Future Forum
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
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Squads
India: Kohli (c), Rahul, Shaw, Agarwal, Pujara, Rahane, Vihari, Pant (wk), Ashwin, Jadeja, Kuldeep, Shami, Umesh, Siraj, Thakur
West Indies: Holder (c), Ambris, Bishoo, Brathwaite, Chase, Dowrich (wk), Gabriel, Hamilton, Hetmyer, Hope, Lewis, Paul, Powell, Roach, Warrican, Joseph
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
Scoreline
Liverpool 3
Mane (7'), Salah (69'), Firmino (90')
Bournemouth 0
TCL INFO
Teams:
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
PROFILE
Name: Enhance Fitness
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 200
Amount raised: $3m
Investors: Global Ventures and angel investors
The bio
Job: Coder, website designer and chief executive, Trinet solutions
School: Year 8 pupil at Elite English School in Abu Hail, Deira
Role Models: Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk
Dream City: San Francisco
Hometown: Dubai
City of birth: Thiruvilla, Kerala
The specs: 2018 GMC Terrain
Price, base / as tested: Dh94,600 / Dh159,700
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Power: 252hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 353Nm @ 2,500rpm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.4L / 100km
