Portuguese startup Neuraspace has chosen Luxembourg to continue developing its European activities. It has announced the opening of an office that will bring together sales operations, engineering teams and production. “The aim is to facilitate further partnerships and collaborations with local space industry players, the Luxembourg Space Agency and Luxembourg’s national innovation agency Luxinnovation,” said the company in a press release.
Neuraspace has positioned itself in particular ecosystem of European startups that seek to make space safer and more sustainable in the face of the increasing number of objects being sent into orbit. The company’s technology can rapidly detect up to 33% more high-risk collisions than were previously detectable. The tech is based on a system that processes orbital data in real time to provide collision avoidance alerts and recommendations. More specifically, it is developing a platform that uses machine learning and predictive algorithms to monitor objects in orbit around the Earth and anticipate the risk of collision between satellites, debris and other spacecraft.
In September 2024, the Portuguese company signed a two-year, multi-million-euro contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) to provide space traffic management solutions, strengthening their collaboration in the protection of space assets.
The development of the Luxembourg business, which complements the Portuguese and German (Munich) offices, will be handled by two directors: managing director and CEO Chiara Manfletti and sales director Thomas Eggenweiler. Recruitment is planned for operational and sales positions, but also for engineering staff, particularly in AI and machine learning.
“Opening this new office shows our drive for continued expansion and being part of the European space community,” said Manfletti in the press release. “It will allow us to become part of the thriving ecosystem in the region and further our innovative efforts in space sustainability and AI, and our ongoing investments and commitment in defence, space sustainability and AI.”
“Luxembourg has made great strides to strengthening its cooperation in the exploration and use of space resources and its ambition to promote innovation, which aligns with our own goals,” she continued. “Luxembourg is also the European country which invests the most, both in relation to GDP and total government spending, in space exploration efforts and third globally. That’s a fantastic and very promising environment for Neuraspace to be in.”
Luxembourg’s space agency is also delighted with the arrival of this new player on the local scene. “Neuraspace develops innovative technology and ambitions to reshape industries, foster a responsible approach to space activities, and impact on business and society,” said the CEO of the Luxembourg Space Agency, . “We are thrilled to see them join Luxembourg’s space ecosystem and are looking forward to their future projects.” The first step in this collaboration is joint participation in the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, USA, on 9-11 April 2025.
Neuraspace--which has grown rapidly from 25 to 250 satellites on its space traffic management platform in six months--intends to continue its development to help realise the full potential of the space economy. “To fully unlock the potential of the space economy, we need more autonomous spacecraft, which will require decision making intelligence on board for collision avoidance analysis and manoeuvring,” said Manfletti said. The company works with satellite operators such as Spire and Nanoavionics, and has raised a total of $27.5m since its inception.
This article in French.