Artificial Retinas and Implant Films
Why do artificial retina films rank as the leading near-term product made in orbit?
Chapter summary
they combine the strongest elements of the case.
Key takeaways
- 1
LambdaVision builds artificial retinas from many thin layers of a light-sensitive protein, bacteriorhodopsin, deposited one at a time; on Earth, sedimentation and convection make layers uneven, while in microgravity the company reports more uniform films and has made multiple 200-layer films on the ISS.
- 2
An implant is worth far more per gram than any launch cost.
- 3
The company is preclinical, raised a $7 million seed round in November 2025 on top of more than $15 million in grants, and has reserved space on Starlab and agreed terms with Vast; Helogen plans to fly a retina protein mission on its platform.
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