From Bloomberg, October 9:
Billionaire Backs Space-Laser Solar Startup After Robinhood Exit
- Baiju Bhatt’s new company wants to make solar power from orbit
- Robinhood co-founder has invested in several space ventures
The billionaire co-founder of Robinhood Markets Inc. is targeting outer space with a new Silicon Valley startup to build a network of solar power stations in orbit.
Baiju Bhatt, who stepped down as the online brokerage’s chief creative officer in March, is the founder and chief executive officer of Aetherflux, which aims to create a constellation of satellites that will collect solar power.
If all goes well, the satellites will transmit the energy via infrared lasers to customers on Earth.
The network could eventually have thousands of satellites in low-Earth orbit, the part of space where Elon Musk’s SpaceX operates more than 6,000 of its Starlink internet satellites.
“Over time, imagine this as a constellation for energy in the same way we have Starlink for communication,” said Bhatt, 39, who is funding the startup himself.
Based in San Carlos, California, Aetherflux plans on sending a small test satellite to an elevation of about 550 kilometers (342 miles) by early 2026 aboard a SpaceX rocket.
The company is the latest in a series of space investments by Bhatt, who has a net worth of about $2 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index....
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