News

REVIEW - ESA Phi-Lab Austria Open Call Event 2025

26 June 2025, Vienna - Yesterday we celebrated 1 year ESA Phi-Lab Austria and held our 3rd Open Call Event. It was a year filled with ground-breaking ideas, collaboration with visionary founders, and exciting progress in the Austrian space innovation ecosystem.

To mark this milestone and to announce our 3rd Open Call for Proposals, we held our Anniversary & Open Call Event, where we looked back on our first year and launch the next Open Call for Proposals to shape the future of space technology.

Space made in Lower Austria: One year of ESA Phi-Lab Austria

23 June 2025, St. Pölten - One year ago, ESA Phi-Lab Austria was opened as the first competence centre of its kind outside ESA headquarters. Today, Lower Austria, together with the European Space Agency, draws an impressive balance of the first year: Five highly innovative projects, 2.5 million euros in promised funding – and a young company that will soon be launched into space with SpaceX.

Moritz Nowak, CEO, GATE Space with Johanna Mikl-Leitner, Governor, Lower Austria (Credit: NLK Pfeiffer)

Lower Austrian space-tech start-up GATE Space will launch into space in 2026

16 June 2025, Schwechat, Austria - Propulsion technology "made in Austria" will be part of a SpaceX mission – supported by ESA Phi-Lab Austria – Governor Mikl-Leitner congratulates the team.

The Austrian space-tech startup GATE Space has reached a major milestone: In 2026, a satellite with a propulsion system from the young company will be launched into space for the first time.

Kick-off for the first Open Call of ESA Phi-Lab Austria

10 July 2024, Vienna-Schwechat - Yesterday, ESA Phi-Lab Austria invited innovative companies, start-ups and researchers to participate in its first Open Call. The new competence centre at Vienna International Airport, which is the first of 11 ESA Phi-Labs for in Europe, is launching this exciting call to promote projects that are shaping the future of space upstream technology.

Austria's Gateway to the Infinite Expanses

24 April 2024, Vienna-Schwechat - A landmark partnership between the European Space Agency (ESA), the Ministry of Climate Protection, and the state of Lower Austria was announced at a press conference at Vienna International Airport today. The first European ESA Phi Lab has been officially opened. The centre of excellence aims to promote the commercialization of space travel.