The event opened with remarks by João Gabriel Silva, President of the IPN’s Board, and Miguel Antunes, Vice-President of Câmara Municipal de Coimbra. The session was hosted by Carlos Cerqueira, coordinator of Coimbra SuperNova, who moderated the discussion between the speakers and participants.

The programme featured Kelsey Young, Science Lead fo NASA Artemis II Lunar Mission; Pete Worden, astrophysicist and Executive Director of Breakthrough Initiatives and former Director of NASA’s Ames Research Center; and Shaya Afshar, Vice President Crew Partnerships at Vast Space, a company developing commercial space stations.

Throughout the event, the speakers shared their perspectives on lunar science, the exploration of new frontiers in space and the development of commercial space stations. They also discussed the potential of these fields to drive technological innovation, create new businesses and open up investment opportunities.

Held in the wake of the GLEX conference, which took place on 29 October, GLEX Ignition Close-Up focused on fostering closer interaction between speakers and participants, encouraging direct discussion and the exchange of ideas on innovation, business growth and international collaboration.

The initiative provided an opportunity for international experts and stakeholders from the innovation ecosystem to connect, bringing scientific research closer to opportunities for technological and business development.