From Ghent to the stars: EDGX gives satellites that extra punch

Actually, Belgium has quite a strong space industry. There are some 30 active research groups across various universities and more than 100 space companies in the country. And with a thriving digital tech scene in Ghent, they couldn’t have landed in a better spot.

We caught up with these two ambitious entrepreneurs, who even managed to bag the ‘ESA Rising Star’ award late last year. 'I can really see EDGX growing into a global player when it comes to ‘computing in space’,' says Nick.

In the beginning

EDGX kicked off in January 2024 with just two people. Fast forward two years, and there are now 16 of them. That’s an incredibly fast growth, but a necessary one. 'From 2019 onwards, you started accepting a heightened interest in AI in space,' says Nick. 'It became clear back then that a massive amount of data was being generated on board these satellites, and that downloading that data was extremely expensive. So, it really didn’t take long for things to click in my head.

The first product we developed is an AI computer, our ‘edge computer’. Our clients are satellite operators and manufacturers. They integrate that computer into their satellites to quickly deliver data from space and intelligent insights to government clients, defence departments, and commercial companies. On top of that, we also offer this to space agencies, like ESA or NASA, who use these devices for scientific missions.'

For Wouter, fresh from his studies as a Civil Engineer, a trainee programme at ESA was actually the ultimate dream. 'But when I finished in second place, my mind went back to that meeting with Nick at a space fair in Leuven. And that’s what got the ball rolling. By the way, I’ve learned far more here than I ever could have at ESA. I was the first employee, and we pieced together the EDGX puzzle. Eventually, I stepped up as co-founder and CTO, and here we are.' (laughs)

Let’s get back to those clients for a moment. 'You wouldn’t expect it straight away,' says Wouter, 'but the space market is actually getting pretty heated. Loads of big companies, the likes of IBM and Google, are looking to see if they can make the leap into space. I think in a few years’ time we’re going to be properly surprised by exactly who is active up there.'

'Originally, we founded EDGX to solve the problem in space,' says Nick, 'to make it easier to download the data those satellites generate. But what you often hear and read now is that these AI models demand a huge amount of energy in data centres on Earth. Those big companies Wouter mentioned want to bring those data centres into space. Because, in the long run, we’ll be able to get better and cheaper energy from space, closer to the sun.'

The space industry in Belgium

Flanders Space brings together about 48 space companies in Flanders, and Wallonie Espace does the same for companies across the language border. Then you’ve got a few larger players, like Aerospace lab and Redwire. 'We’ve built up strong networks ourselves now, too,' says Nick. 'That allows us to really sound out current issues in the space sector. How are others solving this? We can learn a massive amount from one another.

Right from the start, we chose to be very open about how we develop and test. Both with our clients and with others in the industry. That allowed us to build trust. After all, it’s not a trivial matter; we’re talking about significant investments with a major impact for companies every time.'

'Thanks to our first product,' says Wouter, 'we were able to demonstrate how far we’d come and gain some credibility. People realised we could actually deliver the goods. (laughs) And that’s when they start talking about the real problems they’re facing. That first product is a jumping-off point. It gets the conversation started, and we look at what else we can offer on the hardware front.'

€2.3 million funding

Last summer, the company raised €2.3 million. That capital will be used to expand the R&D line and to scale up production responsibly. New products have a lead time of 18 to 24 months, so those extra resources will inject focus and pace into development. At the same time, they’re focusing on capacity and testing infrastructure. Producing more is one thing. Making sure every product survives the same tests is what really counts.

'We’ve relocated to the Moutstraat since the start of the year, and we’ll be able to install some pretty serious kit here,' says Wouter. 'Among other things, we’ve already bought a thermal vacuum chamber and a shaker. Who knows, we might even launch student initiatives that let them use our equipment. How cool would that be? If they could do all their testing here and we could work on something new together?'

Test flight in space

'Everything we’ve done so far,' says Nick, 'is going to come together in a test flight aboard a SpaceX Falcon, in February. That will allow us to properly test and validate our edge computer. For a number of clients, that’s going to be the clincher. And once that satellite is floating about up there, we’ll basically have a live product in space! To make the most of it, we also sold ‘compute slots’ to other companies, so they can use them to test their software.'

'Actually, this ties in with the shifting mentality in space tech,' says Wouter. 'In the past, satellites were launched for one specific purpose, and the data was sold. Now you see more and more companies launching infrastructure just to rent it out to other firms, who can then choose what data they collect. Obviously, you have to be able to offer an onboard server to do that. Those ‘compute slots’ we’re offering on this mission? That’s our way of testing the waters.'

Technical risks for this mission

What could possibly go wrong? Well, a lot, when you come to think about it. But mostly because of elements the team has absolutely no control over. 'Now, personally, we’re absolutely convinced it’s going to work,' says Wouter. 'But there’s a whole host of challenges we have to take into account, which we’ve tested for here on Earth, too. Just think of the vibrations right from launch. We’re talking massively high frequencies and high G-force. One of the most gut-wrenching stories we’ve heard is about a connector that once worked itself loose due to the vibrations. Then you end up with a very expensive mission for something that is, literally, just not plugged in.

You also need to think about the thermal side of things. We’re still relatively low, at an altitude of 550 km, so the temperature is stable between -20°C and 20°C. We’ve run our own tests from -40°C to 80°C. The biggest challenge is that these fluctuations happen every hour. Most materials aren’t designed to contract and expand like that in such a short time. Here, in our thermal-vacuum chamber, we can test it perfectly.

Finally, we have to deal with radiation, which is strongest over the poles and South America. But that shouldn't be too bad on this mission, as we aren’t going that high.'

Location, location, location

'Expanding our startup further from Ghent definitely has serious benefits for us,' says Wouter. 'The investment landscape here is actually pretty good. The fact that we’re currently the only space company in the region is also a nice touch. (laughs) On the other hand, it does make things a bit harder. We don’t have shared facilities. That’s why we’re building a partnership with Ghent University now. A number of projects are actually going along on that first mission. We get the sense in every way that there’s still huge ‘untapped potential’ here. A blank slate that we can write on ourselves.'

'And the talent is finding us at the moment,' says Nick. 'That’s happened quite organically. The first ten employees had no background in space at all. But now, once people start looking within the space industry, they quickly end up with us. Our team really is one of the company’s strengths. That’s why we want to try to watch the satellite launch together, but logistically it’s not easy. You only get a fixed date very late.'

What does the future hold?

This startup dreams big. 'I can really see EDGX becoming a global player for ‘computing in space’,' says Nick convincingly. 'I dream of every satellite launched into space having at least one of our products or services on board. (laughs) That’s the biggest dream you can have: that you can solve real problems in space and become the absolute benchmark.'

'You can tell changes are coming, too,' says Wouter. 'At the moment, satellites are often flying solo. But soon they’ll likely be interconnected, communicating via an optical link. That could turn the industry on its head. Data will flow differently. Computers won’t need to be on the same satellite, and that opens the door to the current buzz.'

'Yeah, data centres in space,' says Nick. 'You hear a lot about that now (see also this article from Eos, ed.). Applications like ChatGPT or other massive AI models guzzle an extraordinary amount of energy. Today, there are data centres on Earth that take up space, require water cooling, consume large amounts of energy, and incur high operating costs, etc. I expect that by around 2035, it’ll become more interesting to locate those installations in space. However, there are several technical and economic hurdles that need to be addressed first. For instance, launch costs will need to drop further, following the trend we’re seeing now.'

Advice for other entrepreneurs

What general tips do these entrepreneurs have? 'I do have some advice regarding recruitment,' says Wouter. 'You can have people who are perfect on paper for the job in question. But then, when you interview them, you might notice your feeling isn’t quite right. We never ignore our gut feeling, actually. If it doesn’t sit right, we don’t hire that person. We’re very consistent about that. That’s how we’ve created a team of people with very similar norms and values. They really champion our company. That saves us a fair few headaches.'

'Spot on,' Nick chips in. 'For me, it’s: learn to let go. Especially if you want to scale. There’s a point in that journey where you have to let go of certain things and accept that someone else is going to do them. That gave me a certain sense of relief. I used to try to keep much more control over all the balls I was keeping in the air. But now I know that there’s another way.'