Second batch of Slovak incubator for space startups Demoday

From rocket motors to VR simulations: second batch of Slovak incubator for space startups showcased diversity of space economy 

Bratislava, June 2023 - The Industry Branch of the Slovak Space Office (SARIO) organized the Demoday event as a finale of the incubation project Spaceport_SK. Seven teams introduced their projects exhibiting the future of the Slovak space industry.

Second Demoday (of the Slovak incubator Spaceport_SK) organized by Slovak Space Office SARIO, actively supported the development of local space ecosystem. Spaceport_SK connects a technical apprenticeship with a workshop program with the aim of supporting business skills. Its goal is to boost new startups and innovations in the space industry.

Seven teams presented projects illustrating the diversity at Demoday of the Slovak space industry. The teams brought solutions in areas such as the development of rocket engines, unmanned gliders, virtual and augmented reality, applications for intelligent monitoring of space debris, or autonomous plant cultivation. The jury evaluated the creation of a functional prototype, connection with space technologies, innovativeness, sustainability of the project, and whether the project solves a real problem.

The winner of this year was the Straton team, which is working on building a fully autonomous unmanned glider as a return module for aerological probes from the stratosphere. Their project won an award from Deutsche Telekom IT Solutions Slovakia and Innovlab Košice. The Space Wardens team won an award for the most significant progress during incubation for their space debris monitoring project. A special Young Talent prize sponsored by a jury composed of Nalgoo, 3IPK, and Zero Gravity Capital was also awarded, which was won by a project focused on the development of a rocket engine, Slovak Aerospace Technologies.

The Slovak Space Office SARIO team is already working on continuation of the incubation project and hackathon, where participants can set up their own space projects. It is a way how many of the presented startups started. They were created on CASSINI and Act In Space hackathons, organized by Slovak Space Office SARIO.

We are grateful for the cooperation with university incubators, investors, and partners from the private sector, European Space Agency, EUSPA, Space Foundation, and Thales Alenia Space.