What Is Relativity Space? The Rocket Startup Now Led by Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt

• Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt is the new CEO of rocket startup Relativity Space.
• Founded in 2015, the space firm made headlines for launching the world’s first 3D-printed rocket in 2023.
• Now, the company is looking to rival SpaceX and Blue Origin as a leading player in the burgeoning private space market.

Relativity Space, a rocket startup known for its use of 3D printing technology in aerospace manufacturing, has appointed former Google CEO Eric Schmidt as its new chief executive.

Relativity Space’s mission is to build an eventual industrial base on Mars, rivaling Elon Musk’s grand ambitions with SpaceX.

Relativity Space

Founded in 2015 by Tim Ellis and Jordan Noone, Relativity Space has been pursuing its vision of using 3D printing, robotics, and automation to manufacture rockets.

In 2023, Relativity Space launched the Terran 1 rocket, the world’s first 3D-printed rocket.

Terran 1 was launched from Florida on March 22, 2023, and performed well in the first stage of its flight before having issues reaching orbit.

Despite failing to complete its journey, the company saw this flight as a major success and proof that 3D-printed rockets were viable.

“No one’s ever attempted to launch a 3D-printed rocket into orbit, and, while we didn’t make it all the way today, we gathered enough data to show that flying 3D-printed rockets is viable,” Relativity Space’s Arwa Tizani Kelly said during a webcast.

“We just completed a major step in proving to the world that 3D-printed rockets are structurally viable,” she added.

Following the Terran 1 launch, Relativity Space retired the rocket after just one flight. According to its latest update, the company is now in the midst of working on its next rocket , the much larger reusable Terran R.

Schmidt’s New Leadership

The newly appointed CEO, Schmidt, who is taking over from the outgoing CEO, Tim Ellis, will oversee the final stages of Terran R’s production. The company hopes to complete its new spacecraft in the next few years.

The former Google CEO, who worked at the tech giant from 2001 to 2011, will also provide “substantial financial backing” to the company, according to cofounder Ellis on Monday.

“I know there’s no one more tenacious or passionate to propel this dream forward. We have been working together to ensure a smooth transition, and I’ll proudly continue to support the team as Co-founder and Board member,” Ellis wrote on X.

SpaceX and Blue Origin Rival

Despite being founded over ten years after its biggest rivals, SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin, some of Relativity Space’s future plans mirror its biggest rivals, SpaceX and Blue Origin.

Relativity Space’s upcoming Terran R rocket is similar to SpaceX’s Falcon 9 as it offers a fully reusable launch vehicle capable of delivering heavy payloads to orbit.

Elon Musk has outlined his vision of reducing space travel costs through rapid rocket turnaround times.

Like Blue Origin and Musk’s own vision, Relativity Space is looking beyond Earth’s orbit, with aspirations to contribute to space-based manufacturing and even Mars colonization.

In 2022, cofounder Ellis said the company believed building a multiplanetary future on Mars is “only possible if we inspire dozens to hundreds of companies to work toward a singular goal.”

“This is a monumental challenge, but one that successfully achieved will expand the possibilities for human experience in our lifetime across two planets,” he added.