Europe in Space: Infrastructure, Sovereignty and the Next Investment Frontier

In this episode of the altii Interview in the series Innovation Talk, the director at the European Space Policy Institute (ESPI) Hermann Ludwig Möller, is our guest. He speaks with Christian Salow about Europe’s position in the rapidly evolving global space economy.

Space is no longer limited to exploration and science. It has become critical infrastructure — powering navigation systems, financial transactions, communication networks, energy grids, and security operations. As satellite constellations scale and launch costs decline, space is increasingly shaping economic competitiveness and geopolitical influence.

Key topics discussed:

• Europe’s strengths in Earth observation (Copernicus) and navigation (Galileo)
• The strategic implications of Ariane 6 and launch autonomy
• Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellations and the rise of hyperscaling
• The growing role of space in security and defense
• Vertical integration in the space industry and concentration of power
• Regulation, digital sovereignty, and infrastructure resilience
• Public funding vs. private capital: could orbital infrastructure become an institutional asset class?

The conversation explores whether space — particularly orbital assets and space-enabled services — could evolve into a long-term investment category comparable to traditional infrastructure.

For policymakers, the message is clear: space policy is economic policy and security policy.

For institutional investors, the question is whether the space economy represents the next strategic allocation frontier.

Photo © ESPI

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* DE: Die ergänzenden Inhalte können KI-generiert sein. EN: The additional content may be AI-generated.