The Global Space Industry Trends and Predictions for 2030

Oct 02 2020

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The global space economy reached a worth value of $432.8 billion last year. Sure, COVID slowed things down a bit, but not by much; by 2030, it’s looking to be worth approximately $600 million. With this forecasted growth and 183k people already employed by the space industry, countries around the world are paying attention to this pivotal point. From now until then, the industry is set to expand and advance, generating opportunities for governments and private sectors. 


According to KPMG’s most recent report, experts analyzed the key trends behind this expected growth, broken down into 5 pillars:


  • Humans will live, work and holiday in space.  You’ll most likely know an astronaut as many will experience space, but not everyone. Space travel will be a collaborative global venture and living in space will be easier (but still not easy). New medical conditions and new treatments will arise. 
  • Deep space exploration. We’ll mine water from the Moon by 2030 and will be able to grow food in space. VR companions will exist to help with mental health when traveling long distances in space. We’ll operate machines remotely and perhaps finally discover evidence of life in space.
  • Space business models.  Most businesses will be space businesses and the government will be a customer - essentially, the space business will be what start-ups are today. Terrestrial industries will have a presence in space, countries will work together to tackle the industry and manufacturing will be doable. 
  • Space data comes back to Earth.  Space data will be commoditized but it will be regulated internationally and it will be owned. AI will be normality and governments will start conducting census from space. 
  • Sustainability in space.  Sustainability in space will benefit sustainability on Earth and space will have its own legal jurisdiction. Space ecology will be necessary for younger generations and it will be offered as a Master’s program at universities.


If you can imagine how far technology has come in the past ten years, then you won’t feel too surprised reading these. Read more on these trends and see why the space industry is the one to be watching. One thing is for sure, the space industry is just getting started and we’re a lot closer to our future in space than we may think.