Fostering Innovation in Space

New NASA contract marks BMNT Inc.'s third space-centric mission acceleration effort

PALO ALTO, Calif., Jan. 4, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- With the award of a 3.5-year contract to grow NASA's Early Stage Innovation Program (ESIP), BMNT – the company transforming public sector innovation – has built a growing space entrepreneurship practice to address the challenges of today and tomorrow.

Building on work with SpaceWERX and Aerospace Corporation, BMNT will work with NASA to accelerate NASA missions and grow the U.S. economy. 

BMNT's space practice – led by its H4XLabs business unit – is intended to leverage commercial innovation for government needs, particularly in the fast-moving startup ecosystems previously overlooked.

BMNT's entrepreneurial engagement service already helps SpaceWERX, the innovation arm of the U.S. Space Force, connect to entrepreneurs focused on addressing space debris, a growing threat for military and civilian space missions. BMNT also helps Aerospace Corporation, the only federally funded research and development center for the space enterprise, work with the startup ecosystem to impact a wide range of government problems and accelerate the adoption of innovative solutions.

For NASA, BMNT will build and support a responsive community delivering relevant products and services by engaging aspiring and experienced inventors, entrepreneurs and investors, including those that don't realize their Earth-focused research and inventions can contribute to space missions. The effort will engage innovative small businesses, especially companies that are new to NASA and those with women and minority founders and investors. BMNT will drive this community toward opportunities like SBIR Ignite, NASA's annual solicitation for Small Business Innovation Research.

"This ESIP contract will enable NASA to leverage private investment in commercial space to solve mission-critical problems while aligning NASA efforts to strategic investments in Deep Tech," says Ellen Chang, VP of BMNT and head of H4XLabs. "The cost of developing space systems is dropping sharply; spacecraft increasingly use sophisticated commercial off-the-shelf parts; and product life cycles are shorter. NASA no longer needs to build; it can buy. It is in our national interest to foster a vibrant and diverse space supply chain."

About BMNT, Inc.: BMNT is an internationally recognized innovation consultancy and early-stage enterprise accelerator that is changing the future of public service innovation. www.bmnt.com

Media Contact: Terri S. Vanech, BMNT Communications Manager, [email protected] or 203-918-1270.

SOURCE BMNT Inc