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After taking Astra public via SPAC at a $2.1 billion valuation in 2021 and then private again in 2024 to rebuild around next-generation launch vehicles, Kemp's decade-long bet on affordable small-satellite access keeps redefining what commercial space entrepreneurship looks like.
Chris Kemp founded Astra in 2016 to build small, rapidly manufactured rockets aimed at making space access more affordable and frequent.
The company went public via SPAC in 2021 at roughly $2.1 billion and was taken private again in 2024 to refocus on next-generation launch vehicles and spacecraft engines. He previously served as Chief Technology Officer at NASA.
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