Why Honda is suddenly launching reusable rockets | The VergeSkip to main contentThe homepageThe VergeThe Verge logo.The VergeThe Verge logo.TechReviewsScienceEntertainmentAIHamburger Navigation ButtonThe homepageThe VergeThe Verge logo.Hamburger Navigation ButtonNavigation DrawerThe VergeThe Verge logo.Login / Sign UpcloseCloseSearchTechExpandAmazonAppleFacebookGoogleMicrosoftSamsungBusinessCreatorsMobilePolicySecurityTransportationReviewsExpandLaptopsPhonesHeadphonesTabletsSmart HomeSmartwatchesSpeakersDronesScienceExpandSpaceEnergyEnvironmentHealthEntertainmentExpandGamesTV ShowsMoviesAudioAIVerge ShoppingExpandBuying GuidesDealsGift GuidesSee All ShoppingCarsExpandElectric CarsAutonomous CarsRide-sharingScootersOther TransportationFeaturesVideosExpandYouTubeTikTokInstagramPodcastsExpandDecoderThe VergecastVersion HistoryNewslettersExpandThe Verge DailyInstallerVerge DealsNotepadOptimizerRegulatorThe StepbackArchivesStoreSubscribeFacebookThreadsInstagramYoutubeRSSThe VergeThe Verge logo.Why Honda is suddenly launching reusable rocketsComments DrawerCommentsLoading commentsGetting the conversation ready...TransportationCloseTransportationPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TransportationScienceCloseSciencePosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All ScienceCarsCloseCarsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All CarsWhy Honda is suddenly launching reusable rocketsThe Japanese automaker successfully launched and landed a prototype rocket in June. Is Honda trying to take on SpaceX?The Japanese automaker successfully launched and landed a prototype rocket in June. Is Honda trying to take on SpaceX?by Brett BerkCloseBrett BerkPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Brett BerkNov 29, 2025, 1:00 PM UTCLinkShareImage: HondaIn June of this year, Honda launched and landed a prototype, 20-foot-long reusable rocket at its research facility in Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost island.Though the company is known mainly as an innovative and iterative carmaker, it is also a transportation conglomerate, having developed and produced motorcycles, scooters, e-bikes, ATVs, boat motors, and even jets. Its skunkworks R&D center built the world’s first in-car navigation system, the first mass-produced automatic braking system, and the first production Level-3 autonomous driving system. Still, aiming toward the stars and potentially launching a competitor to Elon Musk’s SpaceX seemed to stretch beyond even Honda’s wildly diversified capabilities.Yet according to Kazuo Sakurahara — a former director of Honda’s Formula One racing team who now runs the company’s space development strategy — it is a logical move. “Honda products have already expanded across land, sea, and sky,” Sakurahara says, from Honda’s R&D facility north of Tokyo, in his first conversation with the American press. “So, it is not surprising that space is the next field of opportunity.”“Honda products have already expanded across land, sea, and sky.”Honda’s stated goal for this initiative sounds a bit goofy, if phonily altruistic: “To contribute more to people’s daily lives.” But the multinational corporation also clearly sees rockets as key to its core businesses. “The rocket could be used to take satellites up to support mobility, energy, and communication,” Sakurahara says, referring to wide-area communication satellites, which are increasingly essential for the myriad connected features embedded in advanced driver assistance software, as well as a contributing factor in plans for autonomy, in all mobility products, from scooters to planes. “Though we’re more focused on transportation.”Sam Abuelsamid, vice president of market research for the Telemetry consulting group, sees the immediate utility of such a plan. “Honda could potentially use such satellites for its own vehicles, globally. Or it could sell this capability to other manufacturers,” he says. “I could see not wanting to be reliant on a veritable monopoly like SpaceX, especially from someone who is as unstable as Elon Musk.”Given the uncertainty introduced into long-term global geopolitical alliances by the Trump administration, and the threatening activities of Japan’s neighbors like China and North Korea, Abuelsamid sees other motivations behind Honda’s moves toward space. “These technologies could potentially provide defensive capabilities,” he says. “And they probably realized that they don’t want to be overly dependent on the US for that at this point.”As it happens, the payload-carrying rocket is just the capsule tip of Honda’s larger plans for our solar system. Having developed fuel cell technology for over 30 years, despite failing to gain traction with it in ground vehicles, Sakurahara revealed a new application: a circulative energy system, meant to support sustainable activities in space, such as human colonies on the moon.“I could see not wanting to be reliant on a veritable monopoly like SpaceX, especially from someone who is as unstable as Elon Musk.”According to Sakurahara, a vertical solar array, created in partnership with Japanese company Astrobotic, will generate electricity during the two consecutive weeks of lunar daylight, electrolyzing water with a proprietary system that can produce oxygen and supply hydrogen pressurized to 10,000 psi without a compressor. The oxygen can be stored, for humans to breathe, and also combined with stockpiled hydrogen to power the fuel cells during the two weeks of consecutive lunar night. If you’re wondering where the water will come from, Sakurahara says, ice deposits at the Moon’s south pole.Similarly, years after shuttering its 30+-year-long ASIMO android program, Honda is modifying that project with an eye toward creating human-controlled avatar robots for off-Earth use. Strong and/or dexterous, they could be utilized in tasks like module building, refueling, and even fine motor repair skills. Controls could occur in proximity on the moon, or be beamed in from earth via Honda satellites. “Space is a harsh environment, so if this works, it will be an incredibly useful robot for people, freeing users from the constraints of time, location, and physical ability,” Sakurahara says.The reapplication of past research and development ventures, even ones that seemed like dead ends, aligns strongly with Honda’s culture of creative reuse. “While this might seem like a diversion for Honda, they’re actually building on a lot of technologies they’ve been developing for ground transportation anyway—aerodynamics, fuel cells, vehicle control systems, and robots,” Abuelsamid says. “So, it’s interesting how they can take some of that and feed it into different endeavors that are beneficial to them and to their country.”Is Honda’s dominance of space incipient? Probably not. Sakurahara notes that the company has not yet developed or tested a full-size prototype, let alone one capable of carrying relevant payload, and isn’t certain it will commercialize the system if it does. But it’s only been six years, and Honda was able to build a concept rocket, and launch, maneuver, and land it, without it toppling or blowing up. That’s a good start.“If you look at how long it took SpaceX from when they started to when they were able to successfully launch and return a rocket to the ground, that was more like 15 years. So I think there’s a definite possibility that by the early 2030s, Honda could be launching,” Abuelsamid says. “They’re coming at Elon in a few different ways.”After colonizing our nearest celestial neighbor, will Honda try to beat Musk to Mars? “The Moon is 380,000 kilometers away,” Sakurahara says. “Mars can be over 380 million kilometers away. I think our target for now is to make sure that we hit 500 kilometers.”Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.Brett BerkCloseBrett BerkPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Brett BerkCarsCloseCarsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All CarsHondaCloseHondaPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All HondaScienceCloseSciencePosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All ScienceSpaceCloseSpacePosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All SpaceTransportationCloseTransportationPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TransportationMost PopularMost PopularThe 194 best Black Friday deals you can still shop — a ton of tech is over half offThe Super Mario Galaxy bundle for the Switch is 20 percent off today onlyWe found 40 surprisingly good Black Friday deals you can still grab for $30 or lessYou can play classic Nintendo games on these custom SNES-inspired Nike sneakersApple’s most affordable iPad is over 20 percent off for Black FridayThe Verge DailyA free daily digest of the news that matters most.Email (required)Sign UpBy submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice. 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Honda’s sudden foray into reusable rockets represents a bold, multifaceted expansion beyond its traditional automotive prowess. According to Kazuo Sakurahara, Honda’s former Formula One director now spearheading the company’s space strategy, this move is logical given Honda’s existing diversification across land, sea, and sky. The company’s impressive history of innovation, including pioneering in-car navigation, automatic braking, and Level-3 autonomous driving systems, provides a foundation for this ambitious venture. Their stated goal – “to contribute more to people’s daily lives” – is somewhat ambiguous, but the core strategic thinking is clear: rockets are viewed as key to supporting Honda’s established businesses.

The potential applications are extensive, ranging from deploying satellites for mobility, energy, and communication (particularly in relation to increasingly sophisticated driver assistance systems and autonomous driving development), to bolstering defensive capabilities in an era of geopolitical uncertainty. Considering the instability introduced by recent political shifts and the activities of neighboring nations like China and North Korea, the strategic importance of space-based technologies becomes readily apparent.

Interestingly, Honda is leveraging decades of research and development, including its fuel cell technology, originally pursued for ground vehicles but now reimagined for sustainable activities in space. This reflects Honda’s notable characteristic: the reapplication of past research and development ventures, even those that appeared to have stalled.

Beyond simply launching rockets, Honda’s plans include significant robotic applications. Utilizing modified versions of its long-running ASIMO android program, the company is developing human-controlled avatar robots for off-Earth use. These robots could perform tasks such as module building, refueling, and fine-motor repair in challenging environments, with control options potentially occurring remotely on the moon or beamed from Earth via Honda satellites.

The company's strategy also leverages its existing expertise in areas like aerodynamics, fuel cells, vehicle control systems, and robotics. This integrated approach, facilitated by Sam Abuelsamid, vice president of market research for the Telemetry consulting group, highlights the value of a company that can creatively leverage disparate technologies. Abuelsamid correctly noted that Honda’s move represents a multi-faceted approach to challenge a near-monopoly held by SpaceX.

The timeline for Honda’s expansion is ambitious, but not entirely implausible. Considering that SpaceX took 15 years to achieve successful rocket launches and returns, and given Honda’s rapid prototyping and development capabilities, a launch by the early 2030s is a reasonable projection. The company’s initial target of reaching 500 kilometers— a distance significantly greater than the current Mars distance— underscores their long-term vision. While it’s important to acknowledge that Honda hasn’t yet developed a full-scale prototype capable of carrying substantial payload, the initial launch and successful landing of their 20-foot rocket demonstrates a remarkable start.