Steve Wozniak’s space venture seemingly set to focus on cleaning up garbage Bezos, Branson & Musk leave behind
Tech pioneer Steve Wozniak has become the latest newcomer to join the private space business. However, the Apple co-founder’s vision promises to be different than those of billionaires Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Richard Branson.
Unlike Bezos and Musk, whose Blue Origin and SpaceX companies plan to set up cities on Mars or build colonies in Earth’s orbit, Wozniak’s Privateer appears to be focused on cleaning up space trash. A recent press release for an unrelated 3D titanium alloy printer described Privateer as a “new satellite company focused on monitoring and cleaning up objects in space.”
In 2019, NASA called low Earth orbit “the world’s largest garbage dump,” with nearly 6,000 tons of waste. The agency has warned that this debris threatens space-goers with garbage moving up to seven times faster than a bullet. Last year, former NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine urged Congress to fund a cleanup mission, saying that “Debris is getting worse!”
Called Privateer Space, the “private space company” that Wozniak is launching is “unlike the others,” according to a post by the businessman on Twitter. The company’s mission is to “keep space safe and accessible to all humankind,” says a YouTube promo video that Wozniak linked.
“It’s up to us to work together to do what is right and what is good,” the video says. “So, here’s to taking care of what we have so the next generation can be better together.”
No more details have been provided, aside from the Privateer’s website declaring that “The sky is no longer the limit,” and “We are in stealth mode.” According to the website, more information will be announced at the AMOS Tech 2021 conference, which kicks off on Tuesday in Hawaii.
Known as one of Apple’s founders and the designer of the Apple II computer, Steve Wozniak is widely recognized as one of the prominent pioneers of the personal-computer revolution.
