Meet Arkisys, the Startup Building the World’s First Private Spaceport

The company’s Port ecosystem should ramp up space activity by providing a hub for just about everything.

Jack Daleo

Friday, July 07, 2023 at 06:12 PM ET

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A digitalization of an individual Port module loaded with different equipment. [Courtesy: Arkisys]

Key Takeaways:

Arkisys's "Port" is an ambitious space outpost concept, designed to be an orbital hub for assembly, integration, and resupply, aiming to connect space companies and facilitate diverse operations.
Inspired by Earth's maritime ports, it features modular components, universal interfaces (like "Appliques"), and a robotic arm to support functions such as satellite servicing, refueling, and crucially, on-orbit satellite construction.
The Port is envisioned to significantly increase accessibility for private companies and startups to test and deploy technologies in space, while drastically reducing the high costs associated with traditional launch and orbital operations.
Arkisys is actively developing its components, has secured partnerships (e.g., with the U.S. Space Force for satellite building), and plans initial launches, with the first Cutter in 2024 and a full Port module by 2025-2026.

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By some accounts, ports have been around for millenia, with the oldest believed to be Byblos Port in Lebanon, established some 5,000 years ago. Those ports look nothing like today’s—but they served a similar purpose.

“Fiefdoms come and go, kingdoms come and go. But the port itself and the location has arisen as a way in which humans collaborate and onboard and offboard commodities that get shipped around the world,” Dan Lopez, chief business officer of spaceport startup Arkisys, told FLYING.