1 week Ago By Times Now Digital
In a major leadership change ahead of its historic space mission with ISRO and NASA, Axiom Space announced the appointment of Indian-origin executive Tejpaul Bhatia as its new Chief Executive Officer. Bhatia takes over after serving as Chief Revenue Officer for the company over the past four years and replaces previous CEO, Executive Chairman, and Co-founder Dr. Kam Ghaffarian.
Ghaffarian will continue as Executive Chairman of Axiom Space. Bhatia has more than two decades of experience as a seasoned technology and business leader and founder of three investor-backed startups with two acquisitions under his belt. The development comes just weeks prior to the launch of an Indian astronaut on Axiom's Ax-4 mission, a collaboration that sees India enter a new era for human spaceflight.
Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla will be the pilot of the upcoming Axiom-4 mission (Ax-4), which is the fourth private astronaut mission to the ISS. Since joining Axiom Space from Google in 2021, Bhatia has pioneered landmark deals and missions, notably leading the industry’s first-ever sovereign government purchases of commercial human spaceflight missions to the International Space Station, including the groundbreaking Axiom Mission-1 (Ax-1) through Axiom Mission-4 (Ax-4). A seasoned technology and business leader, Bhatia oversaw high-impact, cross-industry collaborations, such as partnering with Prada on NASA-awarded, next-generation spacesuits for the Artemis III lunar mission, and with Nokia to integrate high-speed cellular connectivity into the lunar exploration spacesuits — establishing Axiom Space’s position as a leading innovator and commercial integrator for human space exploration.
"I’ve been inspired by space exploration since childhood, and leading Axiom Space at this critical inflection point in human spaceflight is the realization of a lifelong ambition," said Bhatia on Axiom space's official website. "We are accelerating our investment in next-generation technologies — spacesuits, orbital infrastructure, and microgravity research and manufacturing — and we’re actively seeking passionate, visionary engineers, technologists, and entrepreneurs who want to help build humanity’s future in space." Prior to his stint at Axiom, Bhatia led strategic narrative and ecosystem management for Google Cloud, engaging Fortune 100 executives, venture capital firms, and startup founders, supporting over $4 billion in sales pipeline.
Axiom co-founder and former interim CEO Kam Ghaffarian praised Tejpal Bhatia's instrumental role in turning Axiom’s vision into reality. "His entrepreneurial drive and commitment to our mission will ensure Axiom’s leadership as the space economy accelerates," Ghaffarian said. Get Latest News Live on Times Now along with Breaking News and Top Headlines from Budget 2025, Companies,Business Economy and around the world.
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