[2026 Future Business Forum] "K-Space Has Sufficient Potential... Must Target Niche Markets"

There have been suggestions that, for South Korean companies to achieve visible results in the era of space exploration, continuous rocket launch attempts and full government support are necessary. Although the United States, led by SpaceX and Rocket Lab, is dominating the space market, it is assessed that there are still opportunities for domestic companies—who are comparatively latecomers—to secure competitiveness by targeting niche markets.

Shim Suyeon, Vice President of Perygee Aerospace, stated at the "2026 Asia Future Business Forum" held at Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong, Seoul on May 13, "Achieving the goal of launching satellites at a cost of just a few thousand dollars per kilogram, as SpaceX does, may be difficult to catch up with immediately. However, space access is a complex mission that requires launching rockets quickly, at the desired time and into the desired orbit, and at a reasonable price." She emphasized that there is still room for domestic companies to make their presence felt in the global market.

Vice President Shim pointed out, "Currently, among commercial service rocket companies, only SpaceX and Rocket Lab in the United States regularly carry out launches. In this supplier-dominated market, there are still plenty of unmet needs. The small-to-medium payload segment is likely to be the first opportunity for market entry." Geographically, she mentioned that building partnerships by sharing space exploration missions with regions such as Southeast Asia and the Middle East could be a viable strategy.

On the 13th, a panel discussion titled "Growth Opportunities in K-Space Opened by New Face Companies" was held at the 2026 Asia Future Business Forum at Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong. May 13, 2026 Photo by Yongjun Cho

Vice President Shim added, "However, all of this is premised on the ability of domestic companies to provide reliable launch services. If the government becomes the 'first customer' and takes the lead in reliability certification, it can help private domestic launch vehicle companies strengthen their presence in both domestic and international markets."

The panel discussion, titled "Growth Opportunities in K-Space Opened by New Space Companies," featured leading figures in the private space exploration sector such as Vice President Shim, Ee-Eul Kim, CEO of Satrec Initiative, Kim Sujong, CEO of Innospace, and Lee Jaeho, CEO of Unmanned Exploration Research Institute. They agreed that, for Korea's space industry to grow, a spirit of challenge that does not fear launch failures and a niche market strategy are essential.

CEO Kim Sujong stated, "For private launch vehicle companies to become self-sustaining and maintain commercial viability, they must be chosen by customers or government agencies that have multiple satellite launch plans. Even if a rocket launch fails, it is important to demonstrate, as SpaceX and Rocket Lab have, a willingness to attempt repeated launches until success is achieved." He stressed the need to firmly imprint in the market the image of a company with both the determination to create success stories through continuous launch attempts and the capability to deliver services.

On the 13th, a panel discussion was held on the theme of "Growth Opportunities for K-Space Opened by New Face Companies" at the 2026 Asia Future Business Forum held at Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong. 2026.5.13 Photo by Yongjun Cho

CEO Ee-Eul Kim remarked, "With the recent intensification of domestic-first and regional hegemony policies, 'space sovereignty' has become an extremely important factor. However, the gap between resource-rich advanced nations and countries with fewer resources is widening." He explained that this disparity between space exploration demand and capability was one reason behind the decision to consider a business model based on leasing satellite usage rights rather than simply selling satellites.

He added, "Rather than focusing on what we do best, it is more important to understand what the customer wants and what problems they want to solve. In an era where a giant like SpaceX dominates the new space industry, Korean companies must position themselves in niche markets that these giants cannot serve if they are to find opportunities and deliver results."

CEO Lee Jaeho analyzed, "While internalizing and localizing launch vehicle and satellite technologies in Korea are important, in the future, as launch logistics costs decrease and the market expands to lunar exploration and beyond, domestic companies will also be able to seek opportunities in the unmanned rover market for planetary and lunar exploration."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.