The Next Lunar Unicorn

The next lunar unicorn won’t be a startup—it will be the terrestrial firm that repurposes its IP for the cislunar economy.

The lunar economy is transitioning from exploration to commercialization, creating a $170 billion market by 2040. However, the most underappreciated accelerator of this growth isn’t purely technological—it’s the strategic fusion of space and terrestrial industries through mission-driven partnerships.

We’ve already seen some remarkable milestones with Firefly Aerospace (see video) and Intuitive Machines last week, ispace, inc.’s Resilience Lander to come. But the real industry and value of the Moon lies in how humanity will build on these pioneering first steps through industries perfected on Earth.

Mining, Construction, Energy, Telecommunications, Transport Logistics. These are the industries of the lunar economy, and I can tell you right now terrestrial companies are adapting their technologies to support this lunar infrastructure while benefiting from the innovation generated back on Earth.

Projections show that non-space sectors (energy, automotive, robotics) could drive >30% of lunar economy value by 2035 through these joint ventures.

Now is the right time to be approaching these terrestrial companies and asking them – “Is your company’s next growth market 380,000 km away?”

In an ideal future scenario, what Earth-based company do you think could have the biggest impact on building a lunar economy?