Kelli Kedis Ogborn’s leadership has played a pivotal role in shaping the trajectory of companies entering and scaling within the space market. With a foundation in applied R&D and emerging space systems, her work has focused on translating technical capability into scalable market activity—building programs and platforms that enable governments and companies to integrate into the space economy, strengthen supply chains, manage risk, and scale effectively across an increasingly complex global ecosystem.

Kedis Ogborn has held senior leadership roles shaping global space commerce and space economy initiatives. Through successive Vice President roles at Space Foundation—spanning Space Commerce and Entrepreneurship and later Global Space Programs—she worked closely with companies and countries to establish space market share and led high-impact programming spanning national security space, civil space engagement, commercial innovation, and international collaboration. Prior to Space Foundation, she served as President and COO of Advanced Rockets Corporation, a commercial launch startup advancing next-generation airbreathing hybrid-rocket engine technology; President and CEO of H.S. Dracones LLC, a technology commercialization consultancy; Director of Business Strategy and Development at Perceptronics Solutions, Inc.; and was contracted as a Congressional Liaison to DARPA where she directed briefings on the agency’s $3B portfolio and served as a principal liaison between DARPA and Capitol Hill, the Pentagon, and interagency partners. She currently serves as a Strategic Advisor for Global Markets and Industry Engagement at the Commercial Space Federation, advancing global partnerships and growth across international ecosystems and policy conversations.

She is a widely published author and sought-after speaker on the economics of innovation and commercialization of space. She is recognized for defining and analyzing the economic drivers, technology inflection points, policy implications, and investment dynamics shaping the global space economy. She also serves as a trusted evaluator of government R&D commercialization potential and an advisor to entrepreneurs navigating market entry and scale.

Kedis Ogborn holds an International Security and Conflict Resolution Bachelor’s Degree from San Diego State University, a Political Science Bachelor’s Degree from Stockholm University, a Master’s Degree in Government and Security Studies from The Johns Hopkins University, and a Certificate of Public Policy from the Leon and Sylvia Panetta Institute for Public Policy.