Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak launches space start-up Privateer

Apple's co-creator Steve Wozniak has launched a new space start-up called Privateer Space, bringing potential competition to a field dominated by billionaires Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson.

Mr Wozniak, who established the new company with Ripcord robotics company founder Alex Fielding, posted a teaser on YouTube revealing scant details.

“A private space company is starting up unlike the others,” Mr Wozniak, who founded Apple with Steve Jobs, said on Twitter.

The global space economy, which has attracted many top companies such as Tesla and Amazon, involves various activities such as research and development, space tourism and the utilisation of space.

Bank of America predicts the space economy will have more than tripled in size by 2030, with a $1.4 trillion market value.

“Together, we will go far … we will look out for one another, solve problems together. This isn't a race. It isn't a competition or a game. We are not one person, one company, one nation. We are one planet,” Privateer’s teaser video said.

“We are explorers, we are dreamers, risk-takers, engineers and stargazers … we are humans and it is up to us to work together to do what is right and what is good. So, here's to taking care of what we have so the next generation can be better together.”

Privateer will be represented at the Advanced Maui Optical and Space Surveillance Technologies Conference, scheduled to run from September 14-17 in Hawaii.

“We are in stealth mode,” it added.

Mr Wozniak co-founded Apple Computers in 1976 with fellow college dropout Steve Jobs and businessman Ronald Wayne.

Jobs and Mr Wozniak left Apple in 1985 though they remained shareholders and Jobs later returned to the company.

In 2002, Mr Wozniak co-founded another company called Wheels of Zeus (WoZ) with Mr Fielding. WoZ worked on global positioning system smart tags and was disbanded in 2006.