Tokio Marine Holdings, Inc. has entered into a capital and business alliance with Axelspace Holdings Inc., a startup in the space business sector, to develop new insurance products and services for the space market.
Axelspace, domiciled in Japan, is described as a pioneering startup in the space business field. The company has been engaged in the development, manufacture, launch, and operation of microsatellites since April 2023.
Under the new partnership, Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd. (TMNF), a member company of Tokio Marine Group with over 30 years of experience in underwriting in the international space insurance market, and Axelspace will consider how to work together on some key initiatives.
According to the announcement, TMNF will analyze data on the development and manufacture of microsatellites owned by Axelspace to develop new space insurance products specialized for microsatellites.
Additionally, TMNF will collaborate with AxelLiner, a service provided by Axelspace, that will help establish a digitalized space insurance platform to enhance user experience during the insurance procurement process. AxelLiner is a service that packages various processes involved in microsatellite development and launches projects through a unified interface.
The second key initiative is the development of services using optical satellite imagery. TMNF will utilize high-resolution optical satellite images around the world provided by AxelGlobe. AxelGlobe is an Earth observation platform that is promoted by Axelspace. It aims to develop services to support rapid disaster response and recovery for companies operating globally.
This collaboration’s initial motivation was the fact that launching high-quality microsatellites at a lower cost has become possible with the advancement of space technology. There is a growing trend worldwide to launch satellites equipped with high-performance cameras and sensors to Low Earth Orbit (600 to 1,000 km altitude) to accumulate and utilize various types of data.
