Irish start-ups such as the Réaltra space company should remain in European hands, according to Rodrigo da Costa, executive director of the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (Euspa).
Mr da Costa told the Transport Research Arena conference in the RDS that the agency is focusing on implementing a new emergency alert system for European phones.
He is also working on implementing wider ‘geofencing’ standards for drones breaching airports and ensuring that Irish start-ups can grow before being acquired out of Europe.
Da Costa believes that in the near future, every European smartphone will be able to receive critical emergency alerts from European-controlled satellites regarding natural disasters or security emergencies.
