From upstream space services and satellite manufacturing to transformative downstream applications in healthcare, finance, energy, smart cities, agriculture, and more.
From specialist communities and technology brokers to investor networks and dedicated innovation labs, these programmes provide essential expertise, resources, and partnership opportunities. Through platforms such as the ESA Business Incubation Centres and the ESA Phi-lab NET, participants gain direct access to mentorship, funding, and market connections critical to scaling space-enabled solutions.
Whether you’re developing new technologies, seeking investment, or looking to collaborate, this network centralises the support and connections you need to successfully bring space innovations to market. ESA’s business networks are key catalysts for fostering entrepreneurship and stimulating economic growth driven by space technologies.
Upstream activities at the European Space Agency focus on the research, development, and manufacturing necessary to build space infrastructure. This includes designing and producing satellites, launch vehicles, ground stations, and other critical hardware required to place and operate space systems.
ESA’s upstream efforts are foundational, involving cutting-edge scientific research, engineering innovations, and the deployment of space assets that enable Europe’s independent access and capabilities in space.
The European Space Agency (ESA) transforms technologies and data developed for space into practical solutions that benefit people and organisations on Earth. By adapting innovations from space missions, such as satellite-based Earth observation, navigation, and secure communications, ESA enables progress across a wide range of sectors.
These include energy, finance, telecommunications, agriculture, sustainability, and healthcare. For example, satellite data support precision farming, environmental monitoring, and disaster response, while advanced navigation and timing systems improve logistics and financial transactions. Secure communication technologies, originally designed for space, now help protect sensitive information in healthcare and banking.
Through its downstream activities, ESA fosters collaboration with commercial and public partners, ensuring that space-derived technologies drive innovation and deliver tangible benefits for society well beyond the space sector.