Biotech Startup Turns to Space to Manufacture Artificial Retinas for Treating Blindness

Microgravity manufacturing on the ISS improves quality of artificial retinas that could help millions living with vision loss

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla., July 1, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A biotechnology startup is harnessing the unique space environment to manufacture artificial retinas that could one day restore vision to the millions of people blinded by macular degeneration.

LambdaVision developed an artificial retina made from hundreds of layers of a light‑activated protein. On Earth, gravity‑driven forces such as sedimentation and buoyancy can cause uneven layers, leading to significant material waste and limiting scalability. To overcome this barrier, the company has taken its manufacturing to space.

Over the past decade, LambdaVision has conducted nine investigations on the International Space Station (ISS). Working with ISS National Laboratory® Commercial Service Provider Space Tango, the team developed a compact, automated production system that operates inside Space Tango's CubeLab hardware on the space station.

The results have been striking.

Artificial retinas produced in microgravity show markedly improved uniformity, optical performance, and reproducibility compared to those made on Earth. They also show enhanced stability and biocompatibility while using less raw material. Additionally, ISS testing allowed the team to refine automation, fault detection, and quality control—key steps toward meeting regulatory requirements.

"Through our flight projects on the ISS, we've taken a lot of the risk out of demonstrating the value of manufacturing in space," said LambdaVision CEO Nicole Wagner in the cover story for the latest issue of Upward, the official magazine of the ISS National Lab.

LambdaVision ultimately aims to restore sight to patients with age‑related macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa, conditions that currently have no cure and affect more than 200 million people worldwide.

LambdaVision's next ISS investigation is scheduled to launch later this year, focusing on increasing production volume and further optimizing the manufacturing process. The company has also announced plans to leverage future commercial space stations, including Starlab and Vast's Haven, to continue in‑space manufacturing following retirement of the ISS.

"We're now thinking about how we scale in orbit and what's next as we transition from the ISS to other platforms in the future," Wagner told Upward.

Read the full story in Upward, the official magazine for the ISS National Lab. In your coverage, please link to the original story and credit the ISS National Laboratory® as the research sponsor.

Download a high-resolution image for this release: LambdaVision Microgravity Manufacturing

About the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory:
The International Space Station (ISS) is a one-of-a-kind laboratory that enables research and technology development not possible on Earth. As a public service enterprise, the ISS National Laboratory® allows researchers to leverage this multiuser facility to improve quality of life on Earth, mature space-based business models, advance science literacy in the future workforce, and expand a sustainable and scalable market in low Earth orbit. Through this orbiting national laboratory, research resources on the ISS are available to support non-NASA science, technology, and education initiatives from U.S. government agencies, academic institutions, and the private sector. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space® (CASIS®) manages the ISS National Lab, under Cooperative Agreement with NASA, facilitating access to its permanent microgravity research environment, a powerful vantage point in low Earth orbit, and the extreme and varied conditions of space. To learn more about the ISS National Lab, visit our website.

SOURCE International Space Station National Lab