Hyperspace Challenge

Hyperspace Challenge, powered by the Air Force Research Lab New Mexico and ABQid, brings together tech startups with defense innovators to accelerate innovation for the government. Our unique program facilitates interactions between promising technologies and timely problems to increase rapid acquisition and contracting opportunities. Our goal isn’t innovation at the speed of light; it’s faster.

The Program:

Sign Up
Sign up in one minute to indicate your interest and enter consideration for the Submission phase. Be on hand to answer questions from our advisory committee.

Submissions
Attend a series of webinars to learn about specific space industry needs, then submit your ideas for how your data analytics technology could help solve them. Be on hand to answer questions from our advisory committee.

Hyper-Accelerator
Invited startups and defense innovators will form teams around top concepts and iterate quickly using the Lean Startup methodology. All plans pitched at week’s end will be awarded prizes up to $25k to spur further work toward acquisition or contracting for the benefit of our defense community.

Here’s how the program works:

Sign up in about a minute by telling us about your company. We'll be hosting webinars throughout September to share more about each problem statement. After the webinars are finished, your team has the opportunity to submit an up-to 3 page technical paper aimed at explaining why your solution is the best for any, or all of the posted problems. These submissions close September 30st.


Companies who submitted the top ideas (based on team, technology, and traction) will be invited to join a highly curated group of defense innovators in Albuquerque the week of November 12 to rapidly iterate a plan to get the innovation in our warfighter’s hands as quickly as possible, and present those plans by the end of the week! You’ll work with an Air Force liaison beforehand to ready you for collaboration.

Awards totaling $80,000 ($25k for first) will be distributed to help the best plans take their next steps in acquisition or contracting as quickly as possible. Your liaison will stick with you throughout to push the process.