Dr. Diamandis is the Chairman and CEO of the X PRIZE Foundation, which awarded the $10,000,000 Ansari X PRIZE for private spaceflight. Diamandis is now focused on building the X PRIZE Foundation into a world-class prize institute whose mission is to bring about radical breakthroughs for the benefit of humanity. The X PRIZE is now developing X PRIZEs in fields such as Genomics, Automotive, Education, Medicine, Energy, and Social arenas.

Diamandis is an international leader in the commercial space arena, having founded and run many of the leading entrepreneurial companies in this sector. Diamandis also serves as the CEO of Zero Gravity Corporation a commercial space company developing private, FAA-certified parabolic flight utilize Boeing 727-200 aircraft. He is the Chairman & Co-Founder of the Rocket Racing League. Diamandis is a co-founder and Director of Space Adventures, the company which brokered the launches of four private citizens to the International Space Station.

In 1987, Diamandis co-Founded the International Space University (ISU) (where he served as the University’s first managing director. Today he serves as a Trustee of the $30M ISU that is based in Strasbourg, France. Prior to ISU, Diamandis served as Chairman of Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) an organization he founded at MIT in 1980. SEDS is the world’s largest student pro space organization.

Dr. Diamandis attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where he received his undergraduate degree in molecular genetics and graduate degree in aerospace engineering. After MIT he attended Harvard Medical School where he received his M.D. In 2005 he has was also awarded an honorary Doctorate from the International Space University.

He is the winner of the 2006 (inaugural) Heinlein Award, the 2006 Lindbergh Award, the 2006 Wired RAVE Award, the 2006 Neil Armstrong Award for Aerospace Achievement and Leadership, the Konstantine Tsiolkovsky Award, twice the winner of the Aviation & Space Technology Laurel, and the 2003 World Technology Award for Space. In 8th grade, while living in New York, Dr. Diamandis won first place in the Estes rocket design contest.

Diamandis’ mission is to open the space frontier for humanity. His personal motto is: “The best way to predict the future is to create it yourself!”

Blog Entries by Peter Diamandis

Commercial Spaceflight for the Rest of Us -- Congratulations to Virgin Galactic

Posted December 7, 2009 | 08:15 PM (EST)


Today Virgin Galactic and Scaled Composites rolled out SpaceShipTwo (SS2) a commercial passenger carrying spaceship derived from the winning ship which captured the $10M Ansari X PRIZE (www.xprize.org) for spaceflight in 2004.  While SpaceShipOne (SS1) carried only one pilot and two passengers, the much larger SS2 will be...

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Most Valuable Real Estate in the Solar System

287 Comments | Posted November 13, 2009 | 02:26 PM (EST)


Today's announcement by NASA of significant water on the south pole of the Moon is scientifically critical, economically astounding and extremely important for the long-term future of humanity. Further, this finding now defines the most "valuable real estate in the solar system."

On October 9th, the LCROSS collision, run by...

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Personal Spaceflight Industry - Reflections on the Five Year Anniversary of the Ansari X PRIZE

1 Comments | Posted October 4, 2009 | 10:43 AM (EST)


By Peter H. Diamandis, X PRIZE Chairman & CEO

Today, October 4th, is the 5 year anniversary of the winning of the $10 million Ansari X PRIZE for spaceflight. The most important legacy and meaning of the Ansari X PRIZE on its five year anniversary...

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Launching Commercial Space Flight: Part Five -- Brian Binnie Makes History

5 Comments | Posted October 2, 2009 | 06:35 PM (EST)


Part 5: Brian Binnie Makes History


One of the biggest concerns people have about space travel is whether or not it is safe. Yet, while I was launching into sub-orbit, the safety risk was the last thing on my mind. I was intimately involved in the...

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Gold Rush on the Moon

56 Comments | Posted September 27, 2009 | 04:24 PM (EST)


Last week brought us the exciting official news of water on the Moon. This news is scientifically critical and, more importantly, economically astounding. From a scientific point of view, we now know that the water is interlaced with the lunar soil in many locations, perhaps as remnants of comet...

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Launching Commercial Space Flight: Part Four -- Anousheh Ansari and Her $10 Million Purse

1 Comments | Posted September 25, 2009 | 05:09 PM (EST)


Ever since I was a young girl in Iran, I have had a deep curiosity and active imagination which peak whenever I look up at the night sky. I'm fascinated to think about how we got to this place and time, what will come after us and what else...

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Launching Commercial Space Flight: Part Three - Will Whitehorn and Virgin Galactic Want to Bring You to Space

2 Comments | Posted September 17, 2009 | 12:53 PM (EST)


Launching Commercial Space Travel - Part 3

Will Whitehorn and Virgin Galactic Want to Bring You to Space

The '60s and '70s were space eras. NASA had launched the Apollo program (1963 - 1972), and with that, space exploration was alive. We had accomplished a...

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Launching Commercial Space Flight: Part Two -- Dumitru Popescu Builds His Dream Rocket

2 Comments | Posted September 11, 2009 | 03:30 PM (EST)


To commemorate the 5th anniversary of the winning of the Ansari X PRIZE, every week through October 2, read the inspirational stories of the visionaries and heroes who turned their "crazy ideas" into a reality.

Guest Blogger Dumitru Popescu:

In 2000, I recruited a highly educated and skilled Aerospace...

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Launching Commercial Space Flight: Part One - Finding the New Spirit of St. Louis

33 Comments | Posted September 3, 2009 | 06:35 PM (EST)


Many people look at the X PRIZE Foundation and say, "WOW" - what a great idea." What they may not know is how one person's initial concept evolves to that "WOW" stage of achievement. Here's my journey.

I am a space cadet.

Since the age of 6, I've always...

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"Moon 2.0" Inspiring the Next Generation of Lunar Explorers

78 Comments | Posted July 20, 2009 | 09:47 AM (EST)


Forty years ago this week, the Astronauts of Apollo 11 became the first humans to set foot on the Moon, ushering in a new era of human exploration of the universe. Indeed, even by today's standards, the Apollo program was nothing short of astounding. With an average age in the...
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My In-Depth Audio Interview with Paul Jansen of McKinsey & Company

Posted July 8, 2009 | 03:58 PM (EST)



The McKinsey & Company Report, "And the Winner is...Capturing the Promise of Philanthropic Prizes," was released March 3, 2009. The Report concluded that incentive prizes are a unique and...

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Founding of the Singularity University

6 Comments | Posted July 6, 2009 | 05:23 PM (EST)


This week marks the launch of a new University. It's rare to launch a new University these days, so I'm very honored and pleased to have given birth to Singularity University (www.singularityU.org) along with fellow X PRIZE Trustee Ray Kurzweil. Singularity University (or "SU") aims to assemble, educate and...

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Guest Blogger, Keith Ferrazzi: Rev up Your Company's Innovation Engine with Candor

Posted July 2, 2009 | 03:25 PM (EST)


I spoke at the X PRIZE Foundation's incentive2innovate (i2i) Conference last month in NY. But when it was my turn at the podium, my take was that a conference about collaboration and innovation shouldn't be dominated by one way communication - so as usual, I got the audience interacting with...

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Guest Blogger, William Pomerantz: Our Robotic Overlords

Posted May 4, 2009 | 05:46 PM (EST)


Two weeks ago, the lower bowl of the Georgia Dome in Atlanta was filled with screaming fanatics of a very different sort. What is normally hallowed ground for professional football players was transformed for three days into a playground for bright, young students competing in the FIRST...

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Guest Blogger, Dwayne Spradlin: The Effects of Implementing an Open Innovation Culture

1 Comments | Posted May 4, 2009 | 03:30 PM (EST)


Leading up to the incentive2innovate conference on June 8 + 9 at the United Nations in New York, Peter Diamandis and X PRIZE Foundation will feature guest bloggers that will be presenting at i2i. For more information on the i2i program and for registration, visit www.incentive2innovate.com
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Guest Blogger, Charlie Brown: Opening a New Door

Posted April 17, 2009 | 03:24 PM (EST)


Leading up to the incentive2innovate conference on June 8 + 9 at the United Nations in New York, Peter Diamandis and X PRIZE Foundation will feature guest bloggers that will be presenting at i2i. For more information on the i2i program and for registration, visit www.incentive2innovate.com
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Guest Blogger, Marthin de Beer: Innovation From Around the World

Posted April 16, 2009 | 09:49 AM (EST)


Leading up to the incentive2innovate conference on June 8 + 9 at the United Nations in New York, Peter Diamandis and X PRIZE Foundation will feature guest bloggers that will be presenting at i2i. For more information on the i2i program and for registration, visit www.incentive2innovate.com
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Guest Blogger, Don Tapscott: Encouraging Fresh Thinking from Today's Youth

Posted April 12, 2009 | 05:22 PM (EST)


Leading up to the incentive2innovate conference on June 8 + 9 at the United Nations in New York, Peter Diamandis and X PRIZE Foundation will feature guest bloggers that will be presenting at i2i. For more information on the i2i program and for registration, visit www.incentive2innovate.com
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136 Super-Efficient Cars Compete for the $10M Progressive Automotive X PRIZE... Get Ready for a New Generation of Automotive Options

Posted April 10, 2009 | 09:11 PM (EST)


The idea behind the Progressive Automotive X PRIZE is to help bring a new generation of super-efficient vehicles to market and change the public paradigm about the cars we can and should drive in the future. The paradigm change we're looking to make happen is that you don't have...

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Re-establishing NASA's Leadership

Posted December 12, 2008 | 11:08 AM (EST)


As President-Elect Obama takes office, NASA stands positioned to benefit from the change and enthusiasm brought by his new Administration. Five years out from the announcement of a new vision for America's Space Exploration program, important lessons about what NASA should be doing and how it can best...

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