Are We There Yet? Startup Wants to Launch an 80,000
A non-profit group called Starcloud is planning to launch a small, 1-kilogram spacecraft toward Alpha Centauri in 2029. The mission, known as Fermi Explorer, is expected to take 80,000 years to reach its destination.
Why it matters
It represents a symbolic, long-term effort to push the boundaries of interstellar exploration and spark public interest in deep space travel.
AI data centers in space apparently weren’t enough, so the company decided to give interstellar travel a try.
Read full bio September 1, 2026, 7:40 pm ET
They really are going to just chuck a box into space and see what happens. Fermi Explorer A group of executives and entrepreneurs led by Starcloud co-founders Philip Johnston, Adi Oltean and Ezra Feilden teamed up to develop humanity’s first interstellar spacecraft. If everything goes according to plan, it will launch in 2029, headed for Alpha Centauri, the closest star system to our solar system. But it won’t reach its destination for about 80,000 years.
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