Japanese billionaire to make ‘big announcement’ on space after Musk meeting (updated)
05/12/2022 07:21
(Updates with quotes, background)
TOKYO, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Japanese billionaire Yusaku
Maezawa tweeted on Monday that he plans to make a "big
announcement" related to space after a meeting with SpaceX owner
Elon Musk.
Yusaku Maezawa, founder of online fashion site Zozo Inc
3092.T , completed a tourist trip to the International Space
Station (ISS) on a Soyuz spacecraft in December last year and
plans to journey around the moon with Musk's rocket and
satellite company SpaceX in 2023.
The 47-year-old entrepreneur tweeted that he had held an
online meeting with Musk and "can now make a big announcement
about space on December 9".
The space enthusiast will likely become the first private
passenger on a SpaceX moon mission with a week-long fly-by
planned for 2023, as commercial firms including Jeff Bezos' Blue
Origin usher in a new age of space travel for wealthy clients.
Maezawa made his fortune founding the online fashion
retailer Zozo which was bought by Softbank Group Corp's 9984.T
internet business.
Following Maezawa's tweet, shares in Inclusive Inc 7078.T
which provides space-related business utilizing satellite data,
soared 11.7% to close at 1,171 yen.
(Reporting by Mariko Katsumura; Editing by Kim Coghill and
Stephen Coates)
((Mariko.Katsumura@thomsonreuters.com;))