The year is 2045, and humanity looks to the vast abyss of space—not just through the lens of exploration and understanding, but also to learn how to better protect and repair the only known biosphere in the Universe. 

In this future, our technological advancement has reduced the cost and improved the safety of traveling beyond Low Earth Orbit, toward the farthest corners of our solar system. We begin to seek out and assess possible alternatives to our planet for colonization, with the goal of securing the long-term survival of humanity. Innovation and new space-based businesses are thriving, and form an essential part of our economy, allowing the energy and material resources of our solar system to be used to protect, sustain and repair the Earth’s biosphere. It is a time when we are no longer limited to earthbound resources but can harness the vast resources of space, affording a world of abundance for every person on Earth. 

This is a time when advances in materials science, robotics, nanotechnology, computing, and automation enable us to manufacture and assemble structures, new materials, biological matter, and other advanced products in space, for use both on- and off-planet. This reduces the load on our ecosystem and expands the range of potential products through manufacturing without the burden of gravity. It’s a safer world too, where advanced planetary defense systems protect us against cosmic catastrophes such as asteroid impacts.

XPRIZE is addressing this potential directly, through well-defined, high-incentive prizes that reward the innovations that bring the stars closer, pushing the boundaries of space exploration and propelling us further than we ever imagined possible.