If you want to catch a glimpse into the future of the space industry, put yourself in the shoes of someone who's put their money where their mouth is.

Jim Cantrell is one of those people. As co-founder and CEO of Arizona-based Vector, Jim and his leadership team of space industry heavyweights (each drawn from the likes of SpaceX, NASA, Virgin Galactic, Boeing, and McDonnell Douglas) have created a business to help facilitate what he calls the “consumerization” of space.

“What we’re witnessing is something pretty fundamental in terms of disruption and change. What I liken it to is the elevator, and how it changed New York,” Jim explains. “If you looked at the skyline of New York in the 1800s, it was pretty flat. When the elevator came along, it enabled real estate to grow vertically. And what I see, long term, is space doing the same thing to our economy. To date, I think it’s had a very minimal impact, and what we’re standing on is the edge of a new era. Much like the elevator, it’s going to expand our economic real estate into space.”

This fundamental shift has gained momentum rapidly over the past decade with the emergence of advanced small satellite technologies. These breadbox-size satellites have supplanted their bigger, heavier and far more expensive predecessors. This in turn has opened up the playing field to many more players, notably in the domestic commercial sector (see chart below), and in particular with significant growth in communications and remote sensing applications.