Mitsubishi Electric has invested in Zenno Astronautics Ltd. to drive next-gen space exploration innovations.
Takeaway Points
- Mitsubishi Electric invests in Zenno Astronautics Ltd.
- To drive next-gen space exploration innovations.
- This is the ninth investment that the fund has made to date.
- Mitsubishi Electric Corporation has also acquired all shares of Norwegian elevator company ALT Heis, (headquartered in Bergen, Norway).
Mitsubishi Electric invests in Zenno Astronautics Ltd.
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation on Friday announced that its ME Innovation Fund has invested in Zenno Astronautics Ltd., a New Zealand-based startup company that develops superconducting technology for space applications. This is the ninth investment that the fund has made to date.
According to the report, by investing in Zenno Astronautics, the goal of Mitsubishi Electric is to increase the company’s competitiveness in the space business by studying and evaluating the technology of Zenno Astronautics’ satellite attitude control component with the vision of applying it to the company’s satellites.
Max Arshavsky, Co-founder and CEO of Zenno Astronautics Ltd., commented, “We are pleased to welcome Mitsubishi Electric as an investor through Global Brain’s ME Innovation Fund. We see great potential in a partnership with Mitsubishi Electric, a pioneer in Japan’s space technology development and a global leader in satellite manufacturing and space systems.”
Satoshi Takeda, Executive Officer, CDO (in charge of DX, Vice President, Business Innovation) at Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, remarked, “Through the investment in and collaboration with Zenno Astronautics, we believe the innovative superconducting technology in space will boost the competitiveness of our space business. Mitsubishi Electric will maximize the synergy between the two companies and contribute to developing the space industry.”
Who is leading Zenno Astronautics?
The company said that Zenno Astronautics, led by a CEO who has been studying space applications of superconducting technology for many years, is a developer of an innovative satellite attitude control component that uses superconducting technology to efficiently generate a magnetic field with small energy loss. In addition to being smaller than conventional components, this component has advantages in many areas, including the generation of high-efficiency torque with lower power consumption.
What can attitude control do?
Attitude control plays a crucial role in the success of a satellite’s mission, such as communication, observation, and data collection, by adjusting and maintaining the satellite’s attitude, allowing for precise positioning of communication antennas, cameras, and sensors, Mitsubishi said.
Other Announcements
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation also said on Friday that it has acquired all shares of Norwegian elevator company ALT Heis (headquartered in Bergen, Norway) on Nov. 29 through its wholly owned subsidiary, Motum (headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden).
“Through this acquisition, we will expand our maintenance business in Norway and further strengthen our business foundation by promoting a strategy aimed at increasing our elevator maintenance stock in the European market, where we expect continued growth in demand for maintenance and renewal,” Mitsubishi said.
Mitsubishi Electric and Mitsubishi Electric Building Solutions Corporation (hereafter, MEBS) goal is to expand their elevator maintenance business globally, and the present acquisition follows the 2023 acquisition of UNIHEIS (headquarters: Oslo, Norway), the company added.
