Game Changers: Infinity and Beyond

‘Game Changers’. Two words used to describe the people that dare to challenge the status quo. Those that dare to do things differently, betting on ideas that are so daring yet intuitive, making simpletons wonder why things weren’t done this way all along.

In recent times, I have come across many ventures led by such daring people, who not only have the potential to make money, but also change the game for everyone around them, setting a new example of how things should be done in their respective industries.

Today I shall be talking about a company in the domain of aerospace: Relativity Space

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Relativity Space

Relativity Space is a private-launch space venture based out of Inglewood, California.

Key Members:

Tim Ellis, Jordan Noone

What it does:

Relativity Space has optimised the rocket manufacturing process by drastically reducing the time required for manufacturing a rocket by 10x.

Why is it a Game-Changer:

Relativity has potentially solved the three biggest problems for rocket manufacturers which are: 1) Accelerating the speed of manufacturing 2) Maintaining the quality 3) Reducing the cost of manufacturing through a combination of its proprietary metal 3-D printing technology, artificial intelligence and robotics, effectively digitising the entire rocket manufacturing process.

If their manufacturing process stands the test of time, it will help change the rocket manufacturing industry, promoting faster experimentation and improving launch success rates, in-turn proving to be a catalyst for helping mankind become an interplanetary species.

Concerns:

Relativity Space still haven’t launched a flight. Their first commercial flight launches in 2021, so there is an uncertainty regarding the success of the launch of Terran 1, Relativity’s first fully 3-D printed rocket.

Relativity’s target market is filled with two types of ventures: a) Competitors with deep pockets such as Virgin Orbit (A spin-off of Branson’s Virgin Galactic), and Blue Origin (owned by Jeff Bezos), b) Competitors with a successful launch record such as RocketLab, which has had 9 successful launches already. Relativity does not have the money to compete with deep-pocketed competitors, and it may have to demonstrate success quickly and consistently, in order to gain trust and secure contracts in such a competitive space.

How I found this company:

Being an avid reader of TechCrunch, I found this company on a TechCrunch article, and then followed it on Crunchbase, to keep up with its latest funding rounds.

I also followed spacenews and cnbc’s articles on the space industry to know more about the company and the private launch competitive landscape.