Providing Gravity Reproduction Environmen for KDDI’s Collaborative Space Initiative “MUGENLABO UNIVERSE”

June 17, 2024

KDDI Corporation (located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, President, and CEO: Makoto Takahashi) started the collaborative program MUGENLABO UNIVERSE on May 30th, which aims to solve Earth’s problems by utilizing space. Digitalblast will provide a “Gravity Reproduction Environment,” as part of the demonstration environment.

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■ About MUGENLABO UNIVERSE

MUGENLABO UNIVERSE (hereinafter referred to as this program) is a program where startups engaged in space business, startups from different industries, large corporations, and experts co-create space business and aim to solve terrestrial issues using space technology.

This program provides startups and large corporations with various demonstration environments such as digital spaces that replicate space and low Earth orbit, as well as mentoring and networking opportunities by experts in the space field, to create an environment where companies can easily challenge space business.

Furthermore, by matching startups with new technologies and business ideas with large corporations aiming for business development utilizing space, we promote the commercialization of social issue-solving businesses on Earth using space technology, in addition to space development business.

This program aims to create businesses utilizing space by demonstrating in digital spaces that replicate space in fiscal 2025, starting demonstrations on low Earth orbit satellites in fiscal 2027, and aiming for business creation utilizing space in fiscal 2030.

Participating in this program are 13 companies from the KDDI ∞ Labo Partner Alliance, including Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc., KCJ GROUP Co., Ltd., KDDI Corporation, Suntory Holdings Limited, Shochiku Co., Ltd., SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation, Sumitomo Realty & Development Co., Ltd., Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd., Dentsu Inc., Tokyu Corporation, Toppan Printing Co., Ltd., Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co., Ltd., and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. For startups, we are recruiting entries from unlisted companies established within the last 10 years and companies that have already commercialized products/services.

If you are a startup company interested, please enter from the official program page:

https://www.kddi.com/open-innovation-program/mugenlabo/universe/

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■ About the Gravity Reproduction Environment & Small Life Science Experiment Device AMAZ Provided by DigitalBlast

DigitalBlast is advancing the research and development of the small life science experiment device AMAZ that generates artificial gravity and has obtained a patent (Patent No. 7164910) in 2022 for its cultivation system and methods.

Image of the Small Life Science Experiment Device AMAZ

 

Video of the Small Life Science Experiment Device AMAZ

 

AMAZ has three experimental compartments, each of which can be rotated at different angular velocities to create an artificial gravity environment. By installing AMAZ on the International Space Station (ISS), it is possible to create a gravity environment equivalent to one-sixth of Earth’s gravity, similar to the lunar surface, in addition to the microgravity environment of the ISS. By changing the rotation speed, various artificial gravity environments can be created, allowing for the simultaneous comparison of three gravity environment experiments. Through cultivation and culture under various gravity conditions, basic data on the biological response to gravity can be obtained.

In this program, we plan to start in the fiscal year 2027 and provide a gravity reproduction environment in space. The technology of AMAZ, which enables experiments on plants and cells under multiple gravity conditions, has attracted the attention of KDDI, and it has been recognized as lowering the barrier to entry into the space business for various startups, and consequently, contributing to the solution of Earth’s problems, leading to the provision of the environment in this program.

DigitalBlast will continue to contribute to the expansion and development of the space industry through collaboration with this program.