Ulrich Kübler from Starlab Space puts it in a nutshell: “A space station has to make do with limited resources - just like us. Solutions from space therefore also help us to protect the Earth.” For example, the development of vegetable cultivation with artificially bound CO₂ from the air - originally designed for space - could also make greenhouses on Earth more sustainable in the future.
Starlab Space signed a Memorandum of Understanding in December with the intention of setting up in the Innovation Park Zurich, where the Innovation Zurich event on the topic of “Cross-Industry Innovation” is taking place. The company wants to operate a private, industry-driven space station as a successor to the ISS - innovations are to be created there from 2030. Developments that rely on weightlessness are conceivable, such as the cultivation of mini-organs or the production of new semiconductors.

Technology transfer between space and Zurich
Michael Gloor and his start-up Correntics prove that the canton of Zurich is a good location for connecting space with the earth. The natural hazards expert uses NASA data to create climate models that allow conclusions to be drawn about the probability of flood disasters or droughts. On this basis, Correntics advises companies such as the agricultural group Syngenta on building resilient supply chains and production systems.
Establishing this cross-industry development was not easy, reports Gloor: “Innovation alone is not enough - it requires a willingness to take risks on the part of both the developers and the companies.” He was also able to overcome this challenge thanks to the European Space Agency's Business Incubation Center (ESA BIC Switzerland). Its head Nanja Strecker emphasizes the win-win situation that such collaborations create: “It's great that ESA is running this programme and recognizes that they too can learn from start-ups.”

Openness is key for cross-industry innovation
Cooperation outside the box is also the successful model of researcher Claudia Röösli from the University of Zurich. For her “Genes from Space” project, she uses satellite data to monitor the development of biodiversity - and thus creates transparency on Earth: for example, she can analyze whether a rare maize variety in Mexico is being displaced by avocado plantations. Röösli's tool is helpful for many countries, as the UN Convention on Biological Diversity requires monitoring.
Success did not come overnight for Röösli either. Initially, her idea met with resistance. “I was often told that we were crazy,” Röösli recalls. “That's when I realized that we were doing something really innovative and I stuck with it.” This year, 100 organizations worldwide have already tested their tool. A key success factor for the development was a radically open culture of discussion between biologists and geographers - even when it came to their own ignorance.

Space economy provides new impetus
Communication is also an important driver of innovation in the view of Government Councillor Carmen Walker Späh: “Innovation happens where people come together, it never happens on its own.” New technologies can flourish when researching minds, entrepreneurial commitment and the right political framework conditions come together. “But a strong location is not a sure-fire success, we have to reinvent ourselves time and again.” She is convinced: “The new space economy in Zurich is catapulting us into the orbit of innovation.”

Start-ups that were also present at the Innovation Zurich event with their showcases:

Transcality: The start-up helps cities to plan traffic better. A digital twin of the traffic is used in real time for this purpose. This is also made possible by satellite data from public sources.
Borobotics: The start-up wants to replace the large and expensive drilling machines for near-surface geothermal energy with a small device. The prototype requires 84 percent less space for drilling than previous machines and enables drilling to depths of up to 500 meters. Market entry planned for the end of 2027.
Riverkin: The start-up has developed a device for water analysis. This allows the sediment load in the water to be measured and an early warning system to be installed accordingly. Customers include hydropower plants, for example. And because there are overlaps with satellite data, the measurements could also be used for a cross-check.
ARIS: The student project has been developing solutions for space travel, such as underwater drones, since 2017. In the future, these will be used to explore foreign planets. Today, they are already being used to map accumulations of wastewater in lakes.