By Ron Chen, Correspondent ASEAN Region

Population projections stress the need for sustainable living on our planet and on others. FII Institute announces today an investment in Interstellar Lab, a space technology company designing closed loop biodomes for sustaining life on Earth, the moon, and Mars.

FII Institute is a global non-profit foundation with an investment arm and one agenda: Impact on Humanity. The US$500,000 equity investment is a part of Interstellar Lab’s latest $3M USD Seed Round and builds on FII Institute’s commitment to catalyze globally relevant, real-world solutions in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, Education, Healthcare and Sustainability. Through the investment, the Institute will fund the development of, and leverage, AI simulation-based designs to tackle Earth’s most pressing environmental issues, paving the way to solutions in waste management, zero-impact living and resource-conscious agriculture.

“Climate change is a real emergency for Earth, and we only have a small window to bring about positive change. We are developing a new framework for sustainable living on Earth and a testbed for future space missions,”Founder and CEO, Interstellar Lab ,” Barbara Belvisi said.  “Working with investors like FII Institute advances Interstellar Lab’s mission to support human life sustainably on Earth, the moon and Mars by generating and recycling food, water and air.”  

FII Institute CEO Richard Attias said, “Space sector growth is creating new opportunities for advanced research and solutions in sustainability. Inspired by the design challenge of human settlement on Mars, Interstellar Lab has forged an innovative approach to sustaining life in the absence of the abundance taken for granted here on Earth. We are very pleased to support the technologies that will help reduce the burden on our planet and prepare us for the future.”

This marks the third FII Institute investment this year following announcements to back Lilium, an electric-powered aircraft reducing the carbon impact of regional travel, and Red Sea Farms, AgTech making it possible to grow food using saltwater. With an inclusive agenda built on three pillars – THINK, XCHANGE, ACT – FII Institute empowers the brightest minds to leverage scientific innovation for positive change, brings leading solutions to reality through investment, and calls for global collaboration in the service of humanity.