'Big, Bold Vision': Ripple's Larsen Praises McCaleb's Space Project

Chris Larsen, the executive chairman of San Francisco-based enterprise blockchain company Ripple, has heaped praise on the space ambitions of fellow co-founder Jed McCaleb, describing them as "big" and "bold."

"America used to pursue new frontiers like this before skidding into bureaucracy and doubt," Larsen said.

Vast, McCaleb's aerospace startup, is currently developing a commercial space station dubbed "Haven-1." The station, whose construction began earlier this year, will have 1,600 cubic feet of habitable space. Four astronauts are expected to be carried to the space station via a Falcon 9 rocket

His aim is to secure a huge NASA contract to launch the space station. McCaleb is trying to pull off such a gigantic feat despite having little experience in the aerospace industry. That said, Vast also has such advantages as close cooperation with SpaceX and McCaleb's willingness to plow huge money into the project

McCaleb, who made more than $3 billion with XRP and Ripple, is fully prepared to lose as much as $1 billion if his highly ambitious effort fails, according to his recent interview with Bloomberg

NASA is set to retire the International Space Station (ISS) in 2030 after three decades of research. The agency is collaborating with private companies to launch its replacements

McCaleb co-founded Ripple together with Larsen back in 2012. However, he left the company the following year due to disagreeing with its direction

As reported by U.Today, McCaleb recently defended his XRP sales, denying that he was trying to harm investors