This publication was prepared under the guidance of Claire Jolly, by a team composed of Marit Undseth, James Joliffe, and Barrie Stevens, consultant, in the OECD Space Forum within the Science and Technology Policy Division of the Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation.
The report benefitted from the contributions and advice of many OECD colleagues and external experts, including through expert workshops where selected findings and analysis were presented and discussed.
Within the OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation, Hélène Dernis provided patent analysis; Brigitte van Beuzekom provided guidance on bibliometrics; Fabien Verger provided support on GBARD data; Antoine Kryus and David Howoldt provided inputs from the STIP Compass; Alexia Gonzalez Fanfalone provided inputs on connectivity; and Claudia Abdallah developed official development assistance and bibliometrics indicators. Yuki Murota, intern, provided valuable technology mapping.
The authors also thank Louis Maréchal in the Centre for Responsible Business Conduct, for advice on critical minerals; Xavier Bryant in the Development Co-operation Directorate, for guidance on official development assistance; and George Vardulakis and Brent Wilhelm from the Nuclear Energy Agency for their contributions on nuclear space activities.
The Secretariat gratefully acknowledges the contributions of external experts and partner organisations, including Emma Stevenson, Francesca Letizia and Stijn Lemmens from the European Space Agency for space environment data; Johannes Schaaf, Geert Boedt and Alessio Milo Cesaro from the European Patent Office for space-related patent data; and Alexandre Vallet and Phillippa Biggs from the International Telecommunication Union. The contributions of participants from space agencies, academia and the private sector at recent OECD events are also gratefully acknowledged, including those provided during the OECD Space Forum Workshop: Shaping Future Innovation in the Space Economy, held on 9 December 2025.
The Secretariat also wishes to express its sincere appreciation and thanks to the Steering Group of the OECD Space Forum for its longstanding support and substantive inputs: the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), Canada; the National Centre for Space Studies (CNES) and the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Space, France; the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), Germany; the Italian Space Agency (ASI), Italy; the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) and the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), Korea; the Netherlands Space Office (NSO), Netherlands; the Norwegian Space Agency (NOSA) and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries, Norway; the Swiss Space Office, Switzerland; the UK Space Agency (UKSA), United Kingdom; the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the United States; and the European Space Agency (ESA).
The authors thank Sylvain Fraccola and Sebastian Ordelheide for communications and publication support. They are also grateful to Alistair Nolan, David Winickoff; Alice Holt, Alessandra Colecchia, Head of Division, Kevin Magron, Deputy Director and Jerry Sheehan, Director, all from the OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation, for their comments and careful review.