Boryung partners with Axiom Space for space projects

[Courtesy of Boryung]

Boryung Corp., a South Korean healthcare investment company, is collaborating with U.S. space infrastructure developer Axiom Space Inc. in the first steps for its space business.

Boryung announced Thursday that it has officially launched a local joint venture with Axiom Space called Brax Space. The name Brax combines ‘Br’ from Boryung and ‘Ax’ from Axiom Space, according to a company official.

Founded in 2016 and led by former National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) officials, Axiom Space aims to construct the world’s first commercial space station. The company is growing rapidly, with its NASA project expenses the second largest after SpaceX’s.

Axiom Space chief executive officer Michael Suffredini served as NASA’s International Space Station Program Manager from 2005 and 2015, when he oversaw planning and research commercialization. About half of Axiom Space’s employees are former NASA officials, the highest ratio among space companies.

Axiom Space is currently building a private space station called Axiom Station that will replace the International Space Station scheduled to be retired in 2030.

Brax Space will hold exclusive domestic rights for all businesses related to Axiom Station and own the rights to use Axiom Space’s technology in other ventures. It also plans to provide services for research and experimentation platforms within the space station, as well as support services for the entire process from initial planning to launch, transportation, and experimental execution.

The collaboration also involves a Korean human space development project, aiming to train the next generation of Korean astronauts. There are also plans to cooperate with domestic companies in the development of space station modules related to advanced materials, semiconductors, energy, and more.

“We plan to promote businesses by utilizing the low earth orbit (LEO) infrastructures of up to 2,000 kilometers that have been difficult to access in Korea,” an unnamed official from Boryung said.

Brax Space will be headed by Lim Dong-joo, head of Boryung’s New Portfolio Investment (NPI) Group.

Since joining Boryung in 2021, Lim has overseen practical aspects of space projects, including investments in Axiom Space.