Company
European Space Agency
Intergovernmental European space agency (23 member states) operating space robotics, AI-enabled Earth observation satellites, and planetary exploration…
- Founded
- 1975
- HQ
- Paris, France (HQ); ESTEC Noordwijk, Netherlands; ESOC Darmstadt, Germany; ESRIN Frascati, Italy
- Status
- active
The verified answer
As of Sep 2026, DEPLOY verifies European Space Agency: 1 model, 1 deployment across 1 region. 2 sources back the record.
CategoryDrones
Overview
Intergovernmental European space agency (23 member states) operating space robotics, AI-enabled Earth observation satellites, and planetary exploration missions. ESA's Automation and Robotics group develops technology for space-based autonomous systems including manipulators, rovers, and autonomous vehicles. Key robotic missions include the Rosalind Franklin Mars rover (ExoMars programme, drilling 2m subsurface), Phi-Sat-1 (first satellite to use AI for Earth observation imagery processing in-flight, launched September 2020), and the Space Rider reusable spacecraft. ESA member states approved a record €22.07 billion budget for 2026-2028 at the November 2025 Council of Ministers.
Verified record
- Verified deployments
- 1 deployment on file
- Active incidents
- None on file
Key facts
Director General
Type
Budget
Annual budget
Key robotics missions
Automation & Robotics group
Phi-Sat-1
ExoMars rover
Member states
Financial stage
Data & sources
Web sources
2
2 sources backing this record.View all →
Models (1)
View all models →Partnerships
Every company European Space Agency has built with, alongside the ones only announced in a press release.
Most-frequent partners
- 1Airbus Defence and Space1× joint
Most recent
European Space Agency on the deployment map
View the global map1 verified deployment across 1 region, newest verified Sep 2020. Explore where European Space Agency's robots are operating, by place and type.
View the full European Space Agency deployment record →
Relationships
Current leadership (1)
- Josef Aschbacher Director GeneralSEC-verified
Safety record
No incidents on record for European Space Agency.
Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.
Full safety record: incidents, sourcing, and exposure data →
Operator customers (1)
- European Space Agency1 deployment
Recent coverage
European Space Agency in third-party press
Peers
56 peers across 1 segment. Every European Space Agency competitor derived from shared form-factor and application-domain edges.
space(56)
36 companies in this segment · low_concentration (HHI 1188.742650389188) · leader K2 Space at 2172%
- Airbusdirect competitor(inferred)strong
- Astrobotic Technologydirect competitor(inferred)strong
- Astroscaledirect competitor(inferred)strong
- Boeingdirect competitor(inferred)strong
- China Manned Space Agencydirect competitor(inferred)strong
- China National Space Administrationdirect competitor(inferred)strong
Financial state
- Reporting basis
- aggregator_estimate
- Lifecycle stage
- early
- Counterparty risk class
- unknown
Each numeric field carries its own basis marker. Aggregators report a number; this surface preserves the source class so verification depth travels with the value.
Partnerships
1 total · 1 operating
Every company European Space Agency has built with, alongside the ones only announced in a press release.
Most recent
Most-frequent partners
- 1Airbus Defence and Space1× joint
All 1 partnerships
open in the atlas →- ESA x Airbus Defence and Space (Ariane 6)withAirbus Defence and Spacedevelopment—operating
Recent activity
Every change to this record is dated, sourced, and independently verified where marked.
- Verified media addedVerifiedJun 11, 2026
Artificial intelligence for Earth observation | ESA
- Record createdJun 6, 2026
Added to the verified registry
- Deployment verifiedVerifiedSep 3, 2020
Phi-Sat-1 at Low Earth Orbit
Sources (2)
Common questions
What is European Space Agency?
What does European Space Agency make?
Who competes with European Space Agency?
Who is the CEO of European Space Agency?
Where is European Space Agency headquartered?
Where does European Space Agency operate robots?
How many robots has European Space Agency deployed?
Is European Space Agency a top robotics company?
When was European Space Agency founded?
Is European Space Agency safe?
Methodology: Verified · 2 sources (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-08-21
Verification posture
Verified
Low confidence
Review state
Stable
Last reviewed 2026-08-21
Sources by quality tier
- 1
- knowledge-base
- Knowledge base
- 1
- unclassified
- Unclassified source
The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.
Methodology surface for European Space Agency.Peer companies
- Amazon25 models
- Anduril Industries7 models
- DJI7 models
- Autel Robotics4 models
- Baykar4 models
- Earendil Robotics4 models
In the press
Recent coverage mentioning European Space Agency from third-party publications. Automatically surfaced; not part of the verified registry record.
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Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) Pre Recorded Sales/ Trading Statement Call Prepared Remarks Transcript
Grupo Control, sancionado por vulnerar derechos laborales en el servicio de Adif en Valladolid
La Inspección de Trabajo ha levantado actas de infracción a la compañía tras constatar irregularidades denunciadas por el comité de empresa, asesorado por CCOO.
La Unión Europea quiere acabar con las visas a los turistas rusos tras los incidentes en el aeropuerto de Leipzig
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Las autoridades estatales emprendieron esta semana acciones legales contra un empresario de Chula Vista, acusándolo de ofrecer servicios legales de manera inapropiada a…
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Machine-readable surfaces
- Markdown mirror: /companies/esa.md
- RSS feed: /companies/esa/feed.xml
- JSON-LD: embedded in this page’s head
- REST API: /v1/companies/a0d558ec-58f3-4f51-9ba3-b062c7d94b9d
- Revision history: /companies/esa/history
- Data documentation: /data
- Query this programmatically: Deploy MCP
Peer companies
- Amazon25 models
- Anduril Industries7 models
- DJI7 models
- Autel Robotics4 models
- Baykar4 models
- Earendil Robotics4 models
Video
ESA’s future launcher preparatory programme is crafting a space transportation ecosystem, guiding the companies and engineers of today to develop and test the technologies required to meet future needs. Space transpor
Last July, a team of robots explored a simulated martian landscape in Germany, guided by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station. This was the final
Will robots replace humans one day? When it comes to space exploration, robots are our precursors, gathering data to prepare humans for deep space. ESA robotics
Trailer of the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin mission. In 2028, ESA will launch its most ambitious exploration mission to search for past and present signs of life
Our astronaut Sophie Adenot shared this video on her social media channels with the caption: [EN] Day 113, orbit 1753 — I love robotic operations! 🦾 In this
Overview of the European Large Logistics Lander mission. We are leading an alliance of international space agencies to prepare a robotic mission to the Moon to
This summer, a team of robots explored a simulated martian landscape in Germany, remotely guided by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station. This ma
Read more at http://www.botjunkie.com/ and http://www.esa.int/esa-mmg/mmg.pl?b=b&type=V&single=y&start=92&size=b
ESA trainee Sander Coene explains the significance of virtual reality and its potential for future space exploration and robotics training. Sander and members
Watch a replay of our hangout with ESA Astronaut Tim Peake and Rosetta Project Scientist Dr Matt Taylor as they discuss robotics in space missions. #robotsinspa
The theme of the fourth DVD in the series is space robotics. ISS DVD Lesson 4 has been produced with the support and input from ESA astronauts, robotic experts,
Join Spaceport Odyssey iOS App: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/spaceport-odyssey/id1433648940 Join Spaceport Browser: http://spaceport.spaceedu.net/ Learn abou
License: ESA / SpaceUp Cologne / spacelivecast.de, CC BY-SA IGO 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo/
Heat Index
Serious52/100
A composite of competitive footprint, funding, press velocity, active partnerships, and supply-chain edges. Different from the Intelligence score below (which is per-form-factor productization). Non-robotics companies cap at 25.
Reality vs attention
European Space Agency draws attention at the 97th percentile but verifies reality at the 0th percentile among aerial robots. Hype Gap +96.4, 1st widest among aerial robots.
6-month trend
Analysis
Clean safety record across 1 verified deployment. Meaningful press and media coverage across the period. Deployment footprint remains limited relative to category peers.
Signal flags
Dimension breakdown
Verified signal
Attention (reach, not merit)
DEPLOY Intelligence scores are computed from verified registry data: confirmed deployments, disclosed funding rounds, regulatory filings, active job listings, video viewership, and press coverage. Confidence ratings reflect data availability. Scores update nightly.
DEPLOY Indices — verified vs claimed
Last computed: Sep 4, 2026