As NASA picks former Google CEO Eric Schmidt's rocket company for Mars mission, some analysts see it as a 'risk'
NASA has tapped former Google CEO Eric Schmidt's rocket startup Relativity Space to launch an ambitious new Mars mission. The space agency said that it has contracted Relativity to design, build, and launch a spacecraft bound for Martian orbit. Relativity Space is a 3D-printing rocket manufacturer acquired by Google's former executive chair Eric Schmidt in 2025. Dubbed "Aeolus," the mission will carry a suite of four scientific instruments designed to provide the first daily, global view of Mars’ dust, winds, and atmospheric temperature. NASA officials hope the resulting data will be critical to ensuring the safety of future robotic landers and, eventually, human astronauts.
The agreement is structured under a public-private partnership model pioneered by NASA’s historical deals with SpaceX for space station cargo and Firefly Aerospace for lunar landers. Under this framework, the government agency manages the scientific payload while the private partner absorbs a portion of the development costs and provides low-cost infrastructure.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, a two-time private spacefarer with SpaceX and a vocal champion of commercial partnerships, praised the collaboration. In a statement, Isaacman noted that pairing world-class government instruments with commercial innovation allows the agency to deliver more science, more frequently, while accelerating the timeline to get essential data to researchers preparing for human missions. "The quest to discover the secrets of the universe is a shared endeavor, and not exclusive to the world’s space agencies. At @NASA we are grateful to partner with and support @ericschmidt and the @relativityspace team, and hope this mission can be a model for future privately funded, philanthropic efforts in space," wrote Isaacman in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
NASA is taking on risk, say analysts
The Aeolus mission is scheduled for a 2028 launch, giving Relativity just two years to finalize its spacecraft design and finish developing the rocket required to escape Earth's gravity. NASA has not disclosed the financial terms of the contract.
According to a report in Techcrunch, "NASA is taking on risk as well." Analysts see the mission as a high-stakes gamble for NASA, as Relativity remains largely unproven in the orbital market. By pushing public-private partnerships into deep space, NASA is not only stretching its budget, but is also seen to be embracing significant risk. Previous startup partners have faced bankruptcy or mission failures, and the commercial viability for services as far out as Mars remains highly uncertain.
The agreement is structured under a public-private partnership model pioneered by NASA’s historical deals with SpaceX for space station cargo and Firefly Aerospace for lunar landers. Under this framework, the government agency manages the scientific payload while the private partner absorbs a portion of the development costs and provides low-cost infrastructure.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, a two-time private spacefarer with SpaceX and a vocal champion of commercial partnerships, praised the collaboration. In a statement, Isaacman noted that pairing world-class government instruments with commercial innovation allows the agency to deliver more science, more frequently, while accelerating the timeline to get essential data to researchers preparing for human missions. "The quest to discover the secrets of the universe is a shared endeavor, and not exclusive to the world’s space agencies. At @NASA we are grateful to partner with and support @ericschmidt and the @relativityspace team, and hope this mission can be a model for future privately funded, philanthropic efforts in space," wrote Isaacman in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
NASA is taking on risk, say analysts
The Aeolus mission is scheduled for a 2028 launch, giving Relativity just two years to finalize its spacecraft design and finish developing the rocket required to escape Earth's gravity. NASA has not disclosed the financial terms of the contract.
According to a report in Techcrunch, "NASA is taking on risk as well." Analysts see the mission as a high-stakes gamble for NASA, as Relativity remains largely unproven in the orbital market. By pushing public-private partnerships into deep space, NASA is not only stretching its budget, but is also seen to be embracing significant risk. Previous startup partners have faced bankruptcy or mission failures, and the commercial viability for services as far out as Mars remains highly uncertain.
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