"Challenging the Space Industry. Pooling corporate and individual strength to turn 'dream-like' into reality." Takeshi Hakamada

We spoke with Takeshi Hakamada, who leads "HAKUTO," a team competing in the Google Lunar XPRIZE—an international race set in space—challenging the dream of landing a robot on the moon using private capital.

We want to accelerate the space industry and development through this race

HAKUTO is the only team from Japan participating in the international space race, the Google Lunar XPRIZE. The race's mission is to "send a robot to the lunar surface using only private capital by the end of 2017, have it travel over 500 meters, and transmit high-definition images back to Earth." It's essentially like an F1 race on the moon. Do you remember Charles Lindbergh, who crossed the Atlantic in 1927? After Lindbergh's non-stop transatlantic flight, the aircraft industry took a giant leap forward. In fact, this transatlantic crossing was also a prize race known as the "Ortig Prize." Showing tangible results to the world drove the development of technology and industry. The Google Lunar XPRIZE also draws inspiration from this transatlantic episode and the subsequent leap in the aircraft industry.

HAKUTO is tackling the development of a lunar rover for exploration. We plan to purchase space on another team's rocket and lunar lander to reach the Moon. Currently, we have been recognized as one of the top five teams by winning the Google Lunar XPRIZE "Interim Prize" in January 2015. The ultimate winning team will receive a $20 million prize (approximately ¥2.4 billion) from Google, the race sponsor. However, we are not primarily in this for the prize money. Relying solely on the prize would make it difficult to recoup development and project costs, often resulting in a deficit. What matters most is not the prize itself, but using the race as a catalyst to drive innovation and accelerate the space industry and development.

Developing an ultra-compact exploration rover utilizing partner companies' technologies

That said, advancing the project realistically requires funding. We are therefore seeking support from companies that understand our challenge, aiming for 1 billion yen. While our primary challenge is "private-sector-led lunar exploration," we believe there is a greater societal mission beyond that. It is to demonstrate that "even the most dreamlike challenges can be realized by taking one step at a time." We chose to challenge the space industry, but we want more people who see this to challenge themselves toward their own goals. If that happens, Japan will surely become a better society. Our motto is: "Turn 'dream-like' into reality." We receive support from companies that share this philosophy.

This support takes many forms. Providing technology and know-how is also a major contribution. You might think the space industry is a collection of cutting-edge technologies not yet seen in the world, but that's a misconception. In space, if something breaks, you can't repair it, so you must use highly reliable, proven technologies. Rather, innovation through combining existing technologies is crucial. Our exploration rover incorporates various private-sector technologies, including the expertise and know-how of our partner companies.

Challenging lunar resource business through mass deployment of small rovers

HAKUTO is aided not only by companies but also by the power of individuals. This involves pro bono engagement, leveraging experience and skills cultivated through their work. The keyword "space" often leads people to assume it's just a gathering of engineers. However, to establish it as an industry, just like any company, it requires various functions: management, finance, legal, PR, sales, and more. Therefore, we established a scheme to utilize the experience and specialized skills of people who say, "I want to be involved in space, but I can't commit 100% due to work or other commitments." Alongside this "pro bono team," the three pillars of the HAKUTO team are: the venture company "ispace," which I represent and handles fundraising and business planning; and the "Tohoku University Yoshida Laboratory," which develops the rover.

The Google Lunar XPRIZE is scheduled to conclude at the end of 2017. However, our journey does not stop there. Our strength lies in what is likely the world's smallest and lightest exploration rover. When transporting objects into space, including to the Moon, the cost is determined by weight. Being small and lightweight offers the advantage of lowering overall costs. Of course, if being small and light made it more fragile, that would defeat the purpose. Therefore, we've implemented solutions like using CFRP (carbon fiber reinforced plastic) – a lightweight yet strong material – for the body, and minimizing moving parts to the absolute minimum. More moving parts increase the likelihood of failure. The moving machinery is limited to just four motors and gears installed on each wheel. For the camera capturing the lunar surface, instead of using a single motorized camera to pan across the entire scene, we adopted a method where four cameras are mounted on the sides. This allows for 360-degree imaging without needing to move the camera itself.

We believe that deploying ten, or even a hundred, of these exploration rovers across the lunar surface would dramatically increase exploration efficiency. The first phase of exploration is to find water that may exist on the Moon. If water is found, it can be separated into hydrogen and oxygen to produce fuel. With fuel, rockets can be launched from the Moon to Mars. This would drastically reduce costs compared to launching from Earth. In the future, we also aim to undertake resource development, including rare metals. People might call this a "dream," but personally, I believe that the moment something is labeled a dream, the drive to achieve it fades. For me, the space industry is not a "dream," but a relatively achievable "goal."