Jeffrey Manber

Jeffrey Manber is the Co-Founder and first employee of Nanoracks. He served as the CEO from 2009 until 2021 where he broke barriers for access to space, oversaw the growth of numerous commercial International Space Station programs, and oversaw the development of the first and only commercial Airlock on the space station. Most recently he has been appointed as President of International at Voyager Space. Jeffrey also continues to serve as Chairman of the Board for Nanoracks.

As the only American to ever work officially for the Russian space program, his prior experience includes serving as Managing Director of Energia USA, the American arm of RSC Energia. In 1991, he carried over the first commercial contract between NASA and the Soviet Union to use Soyuz as an escape vehicle for Space Station Freedom. Later, Jeffrey represented the Russian space organizations when the basic contracts to realize the International Space Station were negotiated.

As CEO of MirCorp, which leased the Russian space station Mir, he oversaw the first ever commercially funded crewed mission, of over 70 days, to the Mir space station. His experience developing the business base for Mir and on the International Space Station, paved the way Nanoracks to grow into a commercial space station company.

Jeffrey also co-developed the first fund dedicated to commercial space on Wall Street (Shearson Lehman) and has served as an advisor to numerous companies and governments. The author of three books, his second (Selling Peace) chronicles his time working with the Russian space program. In 2012, Jeffrey was awarded the NASA Exceptional Public Achievement Medal and the Space Frontier Foundation’s 2017 Pioneer of New Space Award. In 2018, Jeffrey spoke before the National Space Council on commercial space services trade with China.