Follow Innovate UK on the latest Global Expert Mission in space to Japan

Pioneering the future of space technology

The UK space industry is one of the fast-growing sectors in the economy. The UK’s space sector generates an estimated income of £16.5 billion annually and supports around 47,000 jobs across the UK.

Space-enabled technologies already underpin key products and services from weather forecasts to communication and navigation. Space technologies are also forecast to expand even further into our daily experiences and help address societal challenges. As costs to launch satellites have fallen, the number of satellites launched per year has grown by 50%, enabling more and more sectors of the economy to benefit from space-enabled technologies, earth observation data and satellite monitoring.

The UK published its National Space Strategy in 2021. A key component of the strategy is international collaboration. Innovate UK are looking forward to exploring the space landscape and supporting businesses both in the UK and Japan on this Global Expert Mission. The mission will focus on several areas key to assessing the appetite and opportunities for collaborative innovation.

These areas include:

• Helping to determine how Innovate UK can best support UK businesses more effectively and efficiently when considering innovation partnerships with Japan.
• Reviewing key enabling technologies to support the UK’s Space sector.
• Providing insights into where there are synergies in policy and strategy between the two countries in Space technologies and regulation and determine whether there is appetite for further collaboration.
• Understanding the Japanese market and key stakeholders in the Space sector and develop strategies for long-term engagement for new products and services.
• Identifying challenges and opportunities for developing innovative products and services when considering collaboration with Japan.

This Space Global Expert Mission to Japan will particularly look to identify opportunities in satellite applications and the innovative use of satellite data and space data. The delegation will aim to exchange cutting-edge ideas, drive enhancements in the global space sector, identify areas for joint projects and research initiatives, and explore potential synergies and challenges following a series of meetings, workshops, site visits with their Japanese counterparts.

The team is looking forward to expanding international collaborations. Follow us on X: @IUK_Global and #JapanSpaceGEM.

About Global Expert Missions

Global Expert Missions (GEMs) are funded by Innovate UK and designed to build international collaborations with governments, societies, enterprises, institutions, and people from every corner of the globe. With global challenges requiring international perspectives, the programme aims to support the UK government’s ambition to be the international partner of choice and a global hub for innovation by 2035.