Space Innovation Challenge
-From Data Utilization to Future Space Service -
Propose a space-enabled solution to a real societal challenge!
1. Overview
The Asia-Pacific region faces a wide range of societal challenges, including disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation, agriculture, marine and coastal management, water resources, urban development, and public health.
Space data has tremendous potential to address these challenges. However, a significant gap remains between the information needed by end users and the space data and services currently available.
The Space Innovation Challenge aims to bridge this gap by:
- Promoting innovative applications of existing space data and services;
- Identifying future observation needs and opportunities for new space-enabled services;
- Fostering international collaborative research and projects involving Japanese universities, research institutions, and private companies.
Participants are encouraged not only to develop practical solutions using existing space data, but also to identify current limitations and propose future observation capabilities, data products, or space services that could better address societal challenges.
2. Competition Theme
Space Innovation for Societal Challenges
Proposals should demonstrate how space data and space-enabled services can contribute to solving societal challenges.
Applicants are encouraged to:
- Utilize existing space data and services effectively;
- Integrate multiple datasets through data fusion where appropriate;
- Generate new insights using alternative data derived from space assets;
- Apply AI or other advanced analytical techniques;
- Identify future observation needs and opportunities for new space-enabled services.
Example Application Areas
- Disaster Risk Reduction and Emergency Response
- Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation
- Agriculture and Food Security
- Water Resources Management
- Marine and Coastal Management
- Environmental Protection and Biodiversity
- Urban Development and Smart Cities
- Infrastructure Monitoring
- Public Health
- Other societal challenges
3. Eligibility
The competition is open to individuals, teams, organizations, and companies interested in developing space-enabled solutions for societal challenges.
Each team should include members with relevant domain expertise (e.g., industry, government, NGOs, research institutions, or other practitioners).
Student-only teams are not eligible. Students are encouraged to participate as members of multidisciplinary teams that include professionals or domain experts.
4. Schedule
- First Announcement
- 1 July 2026
- Abstract Submission Deadline
- 7 August 2026
- Notification of Finalists
- 9 September 2026
- Final Oral Presentation and Judging
- 26 October 2026
Venue
APRSAF-32 Side Event
Bangkok, Thailand
5. Proposal Requirements
Please submit “Space Solution Proposal” using the 
template.
Each proposal should address the following:
- Societal Challenge
- Describe the challenge and explain why it is important.
- Target Users
- Identify the intended users and beneficiaries.
- Data and Services
- Describe the space data and other relevant information used.
Examples include:- Optical satellite imagery
- SAR data
- GNSS data
- GIS data
- Meteorological data
- Statistical data
- In-situ observations
- Other relevant datasets
- Proposed Solution
- Explain how the proposed solution addresses the challenge.
Approaches may include:- Innovative use of space data
- Data fusion
- Alternative data generation
- AI-assisted analysis
- New service concepts
- Current Limitations
- Describe the limitations of currently available data, observation capabilities, or services.
- Future Observation and Space Service Needs (Optional)
- Applicants are encouraged to identify future capabilities that could further improve the proposed solution, such as:
- New observation capabilities
- New sensors
- New data products
- New space-enabled services
- New data delivery models
- Outstanding proposals in this category will be considered for the Future Observation Award.
6. Awards and Benefits
- Awards
- 1st Place
- 2nd Place
- Future Observation Award
- Company Awards
- Benefits
Finalists from ASEAN countries may be eligible for travel support to attend the Final Presentation in Bangkok.
Awardees may receive: - Space data credits
- Satellite observation opportunities
- Technical mentoring
- Proof-of-concept support
provided by participating companies.
Participating companies (To Be Confirmed):
- ArkEdge Space
- Axelspace
- iQPS
- Space Shift
- Synspective
- Tellus
7. Application
- Step 1
- Register online
- Step 2
- Submit your abstract （PDF and WORD）to:
spaceinnovation(at)unisec.jp
by no later than August 7, 2026. - Language
- English
