Helen Huby, Mathematician, Astronaut and Entrepreneur Who Has Been Compared to Elon Musk

One foot in Germany, the other in Bordeaux, he works on a plane, taxi, multiplies conf’call: English, French, with journalists, investors, team leaders. Since 2021, CEO of The Exploration Company, a space technology startup she co-founded, Helen Huby has made it her mission to democratize space exploration by making it affordable, sustainable, and open, just that. If all goes well, in the spring of 2024, and thanks to the hard work of its teams, it will launch its first capsule, called Nyx, a prototype cargo vehicle to rival SpaceX’s Dragon, which could by 2030 deliver the date to future space. stations built with private funds.

A feat that earned him the October 2023 Entrepreneur of the Year Award, organized by the EY firm, in the startup category. “It is a sign of recognition for all the work done with the teams. within two years we grew from 4 to 100 people. We are the space company that raised the most money in Europe, €65 million, in a tough economic environment, and won more than €150 million in contracts. A sign of confidence for the future. we haven’t sent our first ship yet,” the adventurer tells us.

A new space age

Gone are the days when NASA, ESA (European Space Agency) or Roscomos (Russian agency) were the only players in space. The new space era is now marked by the rise of the private sector, led by Space See,” emphasizes Magali Vaissiere, France 2030 ambassador for the space aspect and president of the Saint-Exupéry Technological Research Institute in Toulouse. “The industry is experiencing an unprecedented wave of innovation that is spreading across all areas of its application.”

Helen Huby is often compared to billionaire Elon Musk. his company is still the only one (for cargo) with SpaceX (for passenger flights) chosen by Axiom Space for its ambitions to open space for commercial flights. and remains. The common points end there… “It’s still a few years ahead of Europe,” he says modestly. To the question whether he has always turned his eyes to the sky, the entrepreneur denies. no, his thing, “it was quantum physics”, he smiles. Unlike the American billionaire, who trained alone and did not wear out the seats of the (public) universities where he was admitted, he followed the real. honors course and managed to graduate from École Normale Supérieure (Ulm, Economics and Applied Mathematics), Sciences Po Paris and National School of Management.

In everyday life, I don’t think at all about the fact that I am a woman

Helen Huby

The young woman started her career in the Ministry of Research and Higher Education, but it was at Airbus that she hit the space. He successively held the positions of Vice President of Space Strategy at Airbus Group, Director of Programs at ArianeGroup and Head of Innovation at Airbus Defense & Space. He then became vice president of Orion-ESM at Airbus Defense & Space, where he oversees the delivery of the European module that will carry men to the moon.

“Space gradually imposed itself on my life,” he explains. It was the elements of chance and luck that allowed me this encounter. I was thinking of staying at Airbus, I was one of the youngest women leaders, but I wondered where my work would have the most impact over the next twenty years. And for me, entrepreneurship was the best option. it is from within that we can transform the European space ecosystem,” he explains to us. With a team of experienced professionals, formerly of Airbus and ArianeGroup, he co-founded The Exploration Company to develop, manufacture and operate spacecraft to meet the logistics needs of space stations.

A symbolic moment

The market is expected to grow by 400% over the next eight years, according to the startup’s estimates. “Whether we aim to explore the Moon or Mars, it’s the “how” that matters; if we manage to get back to the moon, it will not be a confrontational exploration like in the cold war era, but a cooperative one. Our interfaces are technically compatible with Americans, Chinese, we will shoot with Indians, then with Americans… Our team has about thirty nationalities.”

Helen Huby excitedly remembers the contract signed with Axiom Space in October. Bruno Lemaire then believes that this signing “shows the ability of our European industry to respond to the space transport market, as well as the reality of Franco-German cooperation and its success on the international scene.” For Hélène Huby, it is truly symbolic. “Axiom did not sign with SpaceX, Boeing or Sira Space, but with us, who were backed by the European Space Agency, but remained a start-up offering a capsule developed with private funds. In my opinion, this is an important moment in space research, which will continue to rely on international cooperation, but first of all, it will depend on public/private cooperation,” he believes.

Put an end to “no woman’s land”.

In the world of technology and space investment, Helen Huby is a pioneer. When the recruitment of astronaut Sophie Adenot was announced last spring, we realized that space still remains no woman’s land. When ESA calls for applications, only 10% of applicants are women. Among the 560 astronauts who have ever flown, there are only about fifty women. However, when we ask her if she feels like she’s broken through the glass ceiling by setting out to conquer space, Helen Huby hits the nail on the head. “I don’t think about the fact that I’m a woman on a daily basis… but it’s true that women are sometimes less equipped than men to negotiate and to deal with brutality in those negotiations without faith. nor law, sneaky.’

Although, according to him, 98% of investors are men, the manager chose to hire a coach. “I told him. “I want to learn to play poker, have the same cards in my game.” I wanted a toolkit that I could use to protect my projects while staying true to my values.” The latter, in fact, are more and more often at the center of discussions. space exploration is costly to the environment… With its reusable capsule powered by a green engine (a more expensive and risky fuel), Helen Huby intends to do the opposite, work for a more responsible space future; “A lot of technology developed for space, a terrible environment, has contributed a lot. solar cells, for example, were invented for satellites. We are increasingly seeking to minimize the impact of human activity, there is no reason why space should not be subject to this.”

An entrepreneur with four children recently hired A life cycle product engineer, is responsible for maximizing equipment life and minimizing environmental impacts. 2024 looks promising. With the French Space Agency and the Bundeswehr University, he founded SpaceFounders, a European accelerator for space technology start-ups, of which he is a member of the board of directors. Before leaving to find an investor, the entrepreneur optimistically concludes: “We’ve succeeded at Airbus, we’ve succeeded at Euro, why can’t we send our astronauts on our own instruments? We all need a dream.”