Uppsala’s business incubator and accelerator, Uppsala Innovation Centre (UIC), is participating in the groundbreaking national collaboration project Swedish Space Innovation Cooperation (SSIC), which has secured 35.5 million SEK in funding. The project, starting in the fall of 2024 and continuing until 2029, aims to develop new digital collaboration methods and services within the space sector. UIC, along with Arctic Business, Ideon, and Innovatum, forms the four Swedish nodes in ESA BIC Sweden, Sweden’s national space startup incubator.
SSIC aims to improve and simplify digital collaboration within the space sector. The project will also establish structured and cross-border collaboration with actors such as the Swedish National Space Agency (SNSA), ESA, Swedish and European industrial partners, and national and international venture capital.
“This project represents a great opportunity for Arctic Business to continue strengthening Sweden’s position in space and innovation. We are very much looking forward to working on this together with our colleagues at UIC, Ideon, and Innovatum,” said Jens Lundström, CEO of Arctic Business, in a previous press release. Arctic Business is the project owner.
The funding comes from the Swedish National Space Agency (SNSA), the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth, Region Norrbotten, and the project partners themselves. SSIC addresses the target group’s needs with a focus on diversity in the industry.
“The project enables more activities within the ESA BIC collaboration, which will intensify the cooperation between the Swedish nodes and create new forums and networks for space companies. Among other things, an annual investor event will be arranged for the target group. We expect the project to provide more resources to companies with space-based technology, but we will also see positive effects generally for deep tech companies. We are grateful that the financiers, like us, see the importance of investing in Swedish technology-intensive innovation,” says Niclas Stjernberg, CEO of UIC
“From the Swedish National Space Agency’s perspective, it is important to support initiatives related to innovation, so that the Swedish space sector can continue to develop with new companies in the growing space industry,” says Anna Rathsman, Director General of the Swedish National Space Agency, in a previous press release.
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About Sweden in Space and ESA BIC Sweden
Sweden has a long history in the space sector and was one of the founding countries of ESA, the European Space Agency. Swedish companies and universities are active in both research and development, and Esrange Space Center is working towards launching satellites by 2025. The global space industry has made significant progress over the past decade, particularly with the rise of commercial actors like SpaceX, and the increased availability of space data and services, a development often referred to as New Space.
ESA BIC Sweden was established in 2015 and is managed by Arctic Business in Northern Sweden, Uppsala Innovation Centre in the Capital Region, Innovatum in the West, and Ideon Science Park in Southern Sweden. Through ESA BIC Sweden, individuals and companies with an innovative business idea based on space-based technology and information can access ESA’s IP rights, technology, coaching, funding, and satellite information for their product development.