Sidh Sikka | How to Build in Space - Lightning Talk @ Vision Weekend Puerto Rico 2026

Why It Matters

Scalable swarm construction could unlock multi‑trillion‑dollar space‑infrastructure markets while dramatically reducing launch costs, reshaping the economics of orbital manufacturing.

Key Takeaways

• Current space deployment limited by rocket fairing constraints.
• Human assembly on ISS is unsafe and not cost‑effective.
• Swarm robotics can enable autonomous, scalable orbital construction.
• Manifold’s Orbital Yard aims for underwater demo then orbital launch.
• Distributed swarms allow incremental upgrades and specialized robot roles.

Summary

In a lightning talk at Vision Weekend Puerto Rico 2026, Sidh Sikka argued that humanity must move beyond launching fully‑formed payloads and hand‑built International Space Station modules to a new paradigm of autonomous construction in orbit.

He highlighted two entrenched approaches—fairing‑constrained deployments and human‑centric assembly—and explained why both are unsustainable: the rocket equation imposes exponential mass penalties, while crewed construction is unsafe, health‑risking, and prohibitively expensive. Sikka projected that scalable orbital manufacturing could generate hundreds of billions of dollars in value, citing emerging ventures such as SpaceX‑xAI data‑center plans and Vast’s modular space‑station concepts.

Drawing inspiration from ant colonies, Sikka described Manifold Research’s “Orbital Yard” program, which uses distributed swarms of simple robots that follow local rules to achieve emergent, large‑scale structures. He announced a planned underwater proof‑of‑concept this year, followed by an orbital deployment next year, emphasizing that swarms can be incrementally expanded and specialized, much like door‑head ants.

If successful, swarm‑based construction would lower launch costs, enable kilometer‑scale telescopes, planetary‑defense assets, and generational deep‑space ships, and open a commercial market for space‑based data centers and infrastructure, fundamentally reshaping the economics of the space industry.

Original Description

This talk is part of Vision Weekend Puerto Rico 2026, a three-day gathering of researchers and builders in Old San Juan.

The program featured 30+ presentations, along with keynotes, lightning talks, office hours, and discussions focused on “AI for X” — exploring how AI is advancing fields like neurotech, biotech, energy, and beyond.

https://foresight.org/events/vision-weekend-puerto-rico-2026/

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