In a major leadership change just weeks prior to an Indian astronaut launching on a historic mission, Axiom Space announced Indian-origin executive Tejpaul Bhatia as its new Chief Executive Officer.
Bhatia, formerly the Chief Revenue Officer of the Houston-headquartered firm, joins at a time of great importance. Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, chosen by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and NASA, will fly to the International Space Station next month on Axiom’s Ax-4 mission, a collaboration that sees India enter a new era for human spaceflight.
Under pressure from previous private astronaut missions to the bottom line, Axiom is working against the clock to make good on its ambitious vow: Replacing the International Space Station (ISS) with a commercial one by 2030. The switch is at a pivotal moment for the space economy, and Axiom is leading the charge.
“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 in a statement. “We are accelerating our investment in next-generation technologies — spacesuits, orbital infrastructure, and microgravity research — and we’re actively seeking passionate, visionary engineers, technologists, and entrepreneurs to build humanity’s future in space.”
Bhatia’s record at Axiom is impressive. The firm in its official website mentioned that since joining in 2021, he has brought in more than $1 billion in contracts, arranged the first sovereign government buys of private astronaut missions, and spearheaded collaborations such as the one with Prada to develop next-generation spacesuits for Nasa’s Artemis III lunar mission. Prior to his stint at Axiom, Bhatia was a startup entrepreneur, an ESPN executive, and a strategic leader at Google Cloud.
Axiom co-founder and former interim CEO Kam Ghaffarian welcomed Bhatia’s appointment. “Tej has been instrumental 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.”
