LA

Leon Alkalai

General Partner at Explorer 1 Fund

Los Angeles, California

Overview 

Leon Alkalai is a retired JPL Fellow at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, with a Ph.D. from UCLA and a successful career in aerospace engineering. He is currently the Chief Executive Officer at Mandala Space Ventures and has invested in companies like Continuum Space Systems. Leon Alkalai has a notable background as an entrepreneur, investor, and expert in systems engineering, with a focus on space systems and security. He has made significant contributions in the aerospace industry and is actively involved in investing in companies in sectors such as medical devices, space, and SaaS.

Work Experience 

MS

Mandala Space Ventures

  • Chief Executive Officer

    2021 - Current

    Mandala invests in Founders to launch new pathways to space, for the benefit of humanity.

Mandala Space Ventures focuses on supporting the commercial space economy and solving problems on Earth using space technology.

mandalaspaceventures.com
AI

Adranos, Inc.

  • Investor

    2023

E1

Explorer 1 Fund

  • General Partner

    2021

    Explorer 1 invests in companies that are fundamental to the growth and success of the new space economy. As we explore the final frontier, we will unearth secrets to advance humanity.

Explorer 1 Fund is a venture capital fund that invests in new space economy.

explorer1fund.space
CS

Continuum Space Systems

  • Investor

    2021

    Continuum is a Software as a Service Platform for space applications.

Continuum Space built the Unified Mission Management SaaS platform for planning and executing space missions with less time and cost

Raised $6,000,000.00 from Mandala Space Ventures, Explorer 1 Fund, Prophetic Capital Partners, Freeflow Ventures and Unlock Venture Partners.

continuum-space.com
V

Verrix

  • Co-Founder, and Member of the Board of Directors

    2014

    Verrix is a JPL-spinoff using NASA technology for planetary protection to monitor medical equipment sterilization in hospitals.

Verrix is a medical device company developing solutions for rapid and accurate sterilization confirmation.

Raised $8,000,000.00.

verrix.com
NJ

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

  • JPL Tech Fellow

    1989 - 2021

    Dr. Leon Alkalai worked at JPL for 32 years starting after receiving his PhD in Computer Science from UCLA. He worked at JPL as the lead for the Advanced Avionics Systems group (92-95), New Millennium Program (96-98), Center for Integrated Space Microsystems (CISM) (98-2001), Assistant Division Manager for Avionics Systems (2001-2002), Capture Lead for MoonLight, MoonRise and other proposals to the NASA Discovery and New Frontiers Program; Capture Lead for GRAIL (2005-2007); Capture Lead for MoonRise (2008-2010); Capture Lead for INSIGHT (2011-2012); JPL Fellow (2012); Manager Office of Strategic Planning (2016-2019), Office of Strategic Partnerships (2019-2021); Project Manager (VITAL Ventilator Project (2020).

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA.

jpl.nasa.gov

Education 

Investments 

Continuum Space Systems

Seed

Total funding: $3M

Articles About Leon

Relevant Websites