Bio:

Amir Blachman is a seasoned aerospace executive and investor with 20+ years’ experience in strategy, finance, management and board administration. He has worked intimately with NASA, SpaceX, Thales Alenia and other space agencies and leading organizations, sending people and payloads to space. He has been tapped into for advice and insights by major consultancies such as BCG, by venture and growth investors worldwide and by funding bodies within the U.S. Defense, Intelligence and Space Communities.

In 2016, Amir joined the founding team of Axiom Space as employee #1. He was with Axiom for seven years, during which he helped the company achieve a multi-billion-dollar valuation, send twelve astronauts to space and win commercial and government contracts totaling over $2 billion. Axiom is building the successor to the International Space Station (ISS) and is building the fleet of next generation space suits that NASA and other countries’ astronauts will wear on the moon.

Before departing Axiom in 2023, Amir raised $500 million for the company and forged global partnerships with organizations including Mitsui & Co., Prada, and Boryung, a global leader in healthcare investment that is using microgravity for drug development.

Amir co-authored a NASA-commissioned study in 2018, helping shaped the agency’s commercialization strategy for Low Earth Orbit, where the ISS and satellite constellations reside. He subsequently co-authored a proposal that gained Axiom a $140 million NASA contract, access to send crew missions to the ISS and granted Axiom the unique privilege of connecting the company’s new space station to the ISS, giving Axiom a decade-plus advantage over competitors.

Prior to Axiom, Amir established a track record of success including leading a space investment syndicate that was an early investor in SpaceX, Planet and Astrobotic. He is accomplished as a real estate investor/developer, and during the late dot-com boom he held senior roles at two high-growth companies, the WeddingChannel.com that was acquired by The Knot and PeopleSupport.com that went public and was acquired by Aegis. Those companies were backed by Benchmark, Accel Partners and IdeaLab.

Amir’s parents immigrated to the U.S. from Israel in 1964. Feeling a personal connection to Israel, and recognizing its value as the United States’ closest ally in the Middle East, he volunteered for three years’ service in the Israeli Air Force. He subsequently began flying as a civilian and continues to do so as an instrument rated pilot. He holds a BA in Psychology from UC Santa Barbara, and an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management. He has taught at the USC and UCLA schools of engineering and business.

Amir resides in Los Angeles with his family and works to continuously contribute to his local community, to the aerospace industry and its related investment landscape.