SpacePharma Files IPO Prospectus: Pioneering Microgravity Lab-on-a-Chip Platforms for Space-Based Biomedical Innovation

Our journey is to the stars and seas. Six hundred years ago, during the Age of Discovery, we built ships and set sail across the oceans; six hundred years later, in the Space Age, we travel through space aboard rockets and spacecraft. Today, human space activities are becoming increasingly frequent.

In the era of grand space exploration, countless space agencies are launching satellites into space, and manned spaceflight has become a commonplace space activity. We are currently in the early stages of intensive satellite launches.It is projected that nearly 60,000 satellites will be deployed in Earth’s low Earth orbit (LEO) over the next decade, driving rapid growth in commercial launch demand.

Satellite launches, rocket recovery, and aerial remote sensing are merely the tip of the iceberg of the space gold mine. As human production activities continue to extend into space, medical and industrial sectors—such as life sciences and materials manufacturing—have become promising components of the space economy. The unique microgravity environment in space not only brings new hope to the life sciences industry but also creates irreplaceable advantages for establishing space-based factories.

2015 is regarded as the inaugural year of China’s private commercial spaceflight industry, marked by the establishment of the country’s first batch of private commercial rocket companies, including LinkSpace, LandSpace, and OneSpace. In 2016, Spacety was founded, pioneering the commercialization of microgravity experiments in China; shortly after its inception, it secured tens of millions of RMB in angel investment.

In 2017, Spacety, in collaboration with the Chinese Academy of Sciences and SpacePharma, Israel’s microgravity chip laboratory platform, successfully launched aboard the PSLV-C37 launch vehicle in India.China’s First Microgravity Chemical Experiment Satellite “Chen Jiayong-1” (DIDO-2)

Since 2016, the Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences has been collaborating with Israel’s SpacePharma. Currently, experiments on projects such as multiphase mixing and polymorphic drug crystallization have been conducted aboard the launched “Chen Jiayong-1.”

SpacePharma is a pioneer in the field of Israeli biological payload systems. In 2016, SpacePharma launched Israel’s first microgravity experiment CubeSat into space. To date,Completed 7 space missions.

How has Israel, a small Middle Eastern nation with a modest population, entered the arena of major-power commercial aerospace development? What significant role does SpacePharma play in Israel’s commercial space strategy? And will we see the emergence of aerospace companies similar to SpacePharma?

SpacePharma is a microgravity experimentation platform company founded in Israel in 2012, and isIsrael’s First Tech Company Dedicated to Providing Microgravity Experiment Platforms. Currently headquartered in California, USA, with offices in both Switzerland and Israel, SpacePharma is dedicated to providing researchers with microgravity experimental environments using lab-on-a-chip technology.

Yossi Yamin is the founder and CEO of SpacePharma. A graduate of Tel Aviv University, Yossi has executed space development projects in the United States, Israel, and Canada.Over 30 Years of Experience. He once served in the Israeli Space Force,Commanded 7 satellite launches.

Shimon Amselem serves as the Chief Scientific Officer of SpacePharma and holds a Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. With over 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, Shimon has served as a scientific advisor to multiple pharmaceutical companies, including Shulov Innovative Science and Marval Pharma. In 2007, he founded Nextar ChemPharma Solutions, a contract development organization specializing in drug development.

In microgravity environments, cell morphology and growth conditions undergo changes. SpacePharma leverages its proprietary chip technology to empower researchers in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, materials chemistry, and the nutrition industry, accelerating technological breakthroughs.

There are generally several approaches to conducting microgravity experiments. One involves sending laboratories to the International Space Station, while another entails simulating microgravity conditions on Earth. Beyond these, SpacePharma has pioneered an alternative pathway by hosting laboratories on small Earth-orbiting satellites.

There are two primary reasons for this. First, biochemical experiments often carry risks of corrosion and explosion. As safety is the paramount objective for large satellites, spacecraft, or the International Space Station, such experiments cannot be easily conducted in these environments. In contrast, commercial small satellites can independently assume these risks.

Second, resources on the International Space Station are limited. Taking experiments conducted on China’s space station as an example, although the Tiangong space station has prioritized life sciences and biopharmaceutical research, gaining access to conduct experiments aboard Tiangong remains highly challenging. As of August 2021, more than 1,000 experimental projects from 16 countries were queued for approval. Furthermore, Tiangong has not yet announced any commercialization plans, meaning that conducting experiments is only possible through a waiting-list system.

SpacePharma has developed technology-driven microgravity tools for biochemistry and drug development, which can be operated via automated processes or remotely controlled by users through a web-based platform enabling near real-time operational control. These tools provide researchers with a system that can be installed on multiple microgravity platforms.Miniaturized, Unmanned, Remotely Controlled Lab-on-a-Chip.Microgravity tools include both independent biological satellites and laboratories aboard space stations.

Currently, SpacePharma has two series of launch projects.

The first is the nanosatellite program, which currently includes DIDO-1, DIDO-2, and DIDO-3. This project aims to test a compact end-to-end drug laboratory—the mGnify lab—under microgravity conditions, enabling experiments such as bacterial growth, antibiotic resistance studies, self-assembly, enzymatic reactions, polymerization, nanoparticle synthesis, particle aggregation kinetics, emulsion stability, and crystallization.

DIDO-1 was conducted aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in 2016; the remaining status and plans have not been disclosed.

DIDO-2, also known as “Chen Jiayong-1” mentioned above, was launched in February 2017. It is a free-flying nanosatellite with a 3U CubeSat form factor. DIDO-2 is currently conducting experiments on enzymatic reactions, peptide self-assembly, and droplet coalescence.

According to public information, DIDO-3 was launched in June 2020 through a collaboration between Israel and the Italian Academy of Sciences. DIDO-3 will conduct four experiments: the effect of microgravity on the binding properties of human serum albumin, the reconfiguration of DNA structure and its function under zero-gravity conditions, bacterial conjugation under microgravity conditions, and the spread and expression control of antibiotic resistance genes.

The second project comprises Nexus 1 and Nexus 2, two laboratories transported to the space station, primarily dedicated to drug crystallization, macrophage research, and studies involving seven human muscle cell groups. Prior to the conduct of these experiments,SpacePharmaMultiple ground-based preparatory activities were conducted, including three parabolic flights and experimental adjustments of organic crystals.

Furthermore, SpacePharma has an upcoming mission supported by the RAMON Foundation. The experiments, which constitute a demonstration project for Israeli schools, include investigations into the effects of microgravity on human skeletal muscle, motor neurons, and pancreatic acinar cell secretion.

In 2022, SpacePharma completed the Axiom-1 mission, carrying out 35 experimental tasks.

Israel is the smallest country by land area to possess indigenous satellite launch capabilities. In the high-stakes arena of commercial aerospace, Israel has carved out a niche in cutting-edge technologies. Constrained by limited resources, Israel’s defense technology development philosophy has consistently prioritized quality over quantity—focusing on advanced, specialized capabilities rather than comprehensive scale. In 2019, Israel became the fourth nation, after China, the United States, and Russia, to reach the Moon.

Israel’s commercial space industry began in 1990, primarily focusing on the sale of its high-resolution, lightweight, and micro-satellites. In 2015, the Israel Space Agency (ISA) set an economic target for Israel: to capture 3% of the global space market share. In addition to selling high-end satellites, biopharmaceuticals have become part of Israel’s effort to build space-based manufacturing facilities.

Currently, only two space stations are operational worldwide. Amidst the scarcity of resources on these space stations, conducting biochemical experiments aboard biosatellites has emerged as a novel solution. Biosatellites were initially designed to carry animals and plants into outer space for space-based experiments; however, they are now increasingly utilized for various biochemical and pharmaceutical R&D experiments.If future technologies mature, biological satellites may become the primary facilities for space-based pharmaceutical manufacturing.

Currently, China’s innovative drug R&D capabilities are expanding rapidly. In terms of secondary market size, the total market capitalization of Chinese biotechnology companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the STAR Market, or NASDAQ surged from $1 billion in 2016 to $180 billion in May 2021. The primary market has also seen robust activity, with total financing in the biopharmaceutical industry exceeding RMB 200 billion in 2020.

In 2021, China launched a total of 36 commercial satellites, with more than 50 satellites expected to be launched in 2022. The total output value of China’s satellite industry reached RMB 469 billion in 2021, an increase of RMB 65.7 billion from 2020, representing a year-on-year growth of 16.29%. Notably, the domestic commercial aerospace company Spacety has completed 12 space missions, launching 21 satellites, including remote sensing satellites and biological research satellites.

In 2021, China’s first commercial aerospace hub was established in Xiangshan, Zhejiang, signaling the arrival of spring for China’s commercial space industry. The “Wolf Amendment” enacted by the United States in 2011 has instead spurred breakthroughs and development in China’s aerospace sector. In the future, the Tiangong space station may become the world’s only operational space station, which will continue to drive the advancement of China’s commercial aerospace industry, realizing the vision of “leveraging space to upgrade Earth-based industries and keeping Earth continuously connected with space.”