Precious Payload

Precious Payload was founded in 2017 by Andrei Maksimov (he has a Master’s degree in microelectronics from the National Nuclear University of Russia and previously owned 2 software development companies) and Andrei Rebrov (a co-founder of $100m YC-backed startup Scentbird). Most of the company’s staff consists of citizens of the Russian Federation living in the UAE.

It is a US/UAE space-tech startup that has developed an online SaaS platform for mission planning, technical assessment of satellite launches, and planning supply chain logistics.

The service will help reduce time, cost, and risks associated with launching satellites by connecting customers with core resources ranging from launch services to insurance providers, all in one platform. The company advocates for building a GDS-like (global distribution system) architecture for space launches, similar to what has been done for airlines and cargo shipments when those industries entered the internet age.

The company achieves monetization of its service with the help of a 5% commission on the signed deal.

The startup also cooperates with Zenno Astronautics (a New Zealand space startup with Russian roots). Presumably, the cooperation between the two companies became possible due to the personal ties of both companies’ tops (Precious Payload Head of Production and Zenno’s CEO studied at one University).
Recently, Precious Payload acquired its competitor HOSTmi (the first space mobility web platform matching carrier assets and hosted payload requirements) to speed up its development.