Pioneering space tech venture powers ahead

Max Arshavsky

With their world-first superconducting magnet system now in orbit, and investment from one of Japan’s largest venture capital firms, there’s no stopping Zenno Astronautics – or its founder, Max Arshavsky.

Moving fast. Pushing hard. Firing up. As the founder of a start-up which aims to ultimately revolutionise space exploration, it’s not surprising that Max Arshavsky’s conversation is peppered with references to power and speed. “At Zenno, all goals are short-term,” he says. “Everything is due today.”

Zenno Astronautics blasted onto the scene in 2018 when the then fledgling venture won the Velocity $100K Challenge run by the Business School’s Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE). The win netted Max a $25,000 grant, a spot in CIE’s Venture Lab incubator programme and critical validation for what was – and continues to be – a bold vision: creating and delivering technologies that will enable humankind to prosper in space. “I’m truly grateful for the support we received from Velocity and UniServices. It was one of the first real votes of confidence for Zenno, and at that stage, we really needed it,” recalls Max, an engineering graduate from Waipapa Taumata Rau, the University of Auckland. “The cheque is still on display at Zenno, and we see it every day.”

While the venture’s core mission hasn’t changed since those early days, the world has – and in unpredictable ways. However, Zenno has adapted swiftly to maintain their successful trajectory, says Max. “The changing landscape has forced us to fine-tune how we operate, making us leaner, sharper and ultimately focused on delivering great technology,” he observes. “Despite the shifts, we are very much on our expected path – stronger and more effective than ever. The focus is on delivering real value to our customers.”

Those customers are commercial and public sector spacecraft manufacturers, and Zenno’s flagship product, Z01, is already delivering that value. Z01 is a superconducting magnetic torquer, a device that provides a fuel-free, fully autonomous and high-precision solution to the problem of spacecraft attitude control. “Satellites need to stay precisely oriented in space – solar panels must face the Sun, and cameras need to point at Earth. If left unchecked, a satellite will start tumbling, making it useless,” explains Max. “Z01 is a superconducting magnet – compact, powerful, and fully controllable. We can turn it on and off, adjust its strength, and generate a precise 3D magnetic field which interacts with Earth’s natural magnetic field. By harnessing this force, Z01 provides efficient, reliable, and fuel-free attitude control, improving on traditional systems that rely on mechanical components or propellant.”

In December 2023, Z01 successfully launched into space on board SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. It was the first-ever demonstration of a high-temperature superconducting electromagnet system in space – and the in-orbit validation of their cutting-edge tech galvanised the Zenno team. “It made us even hungrier,” remembers Max. “Seeing our breakthrough technology work in space proved that we’re onto something big – a whole new paradigm for space based on superconducting magnets. It fired us up, and we doubled down on pushing Z01 to its full potential.”

A substantial recent investment from Global Brain, one of Japan’s largest venture capital firms, promises to accelerate the already rapid pace of developments. Global Brain joined a seed expansion funding round (led by New Zealand venture capital firm Global From Day One), and secured partnerships for Zenno with ANA Trading, a member of leading Japanese airline group ANA Group, and Japanese tech powerhouse Mitsubishi Electric.

Why such interest from Japan? Max explains that the country has a long-term vision for space: “While many countries are still focused on launch capabilities and satellite basics, Japan is thinking decades ahead. Our partnership with ANA Trading gives us access to this ecosystem, allowing us to solve real problems for Japanese companies and integrate into their space industry.”

He describes Global Brain’s investment as a “major milestone” for Zenno – especially as it marks the VC’s first investment in Australasia. “I’m honoured to have the support of Global Brain, and especially Hidetaka Aoki – a true visionary in aerospace,” he says. “Having his backing is invaluable, and there are few endorsements that carry this level of significance.”

In contrast, New Zealand’s lack of investment in the aerospace industry poses one of the biggest challenges confronting the enterprise. “New Zealand has great potential and very strong engineering ability, but we don’t invest materially in this industry, while other nations are pouring billions into space technology annually,” observes Max. “On top of that, our location makes it difficult for companies here to build business in key markets like the USA, EU and Japan.” We need to act swiftly and decisively, he asserts. “The opportunity to become a major player in the space industry is tremendous – but only if we move fast.”

Meanwhile, he’s ensuring there are no missed opportunities for Zenno. “Z01 remains our primary focus, and we’re pushing hard to refine and scale it toward full commercial functionality,” he says. The device is still running in orbit and the system is in “full health”. But there’s a lot more in the pipeline: “We’re now gearing up to launch another one soon – this time, 30 times more powerful,” he continues. “We’re also exploring new superconducting applications that could redefine how spacecraft interact, manoeuvre and protect themselves in space.”

With this emphasis on rapid evolution, it’s not surprising to learn that the necessity of moving at pace has been Max’s most important entrepreneurial lesson. “Cut the noise, face reality fast, and move forward with conviction,” he advises. “The sooner you shine a light on problems, the sooner you can solve them. If I’d do anything differently, it would be moving even faster.”

Although he concedes that the journey of taking a brand-new technology from concept to spaceflight to scalable, real-world product has been a challenging one, he couldn’t be more fired up about the pioneering nature of his work. “We’re building world-leading, game-changing technology – right here in New Zealand,” he declares. “It’s an intense sprint, but we’re making it happen.”