“China is building real hypersonic systems and the West must close this gap”

"To understand where the world is headed, we need to understand the new challenges. For decades, rockets and missile systems have been the backbone of security and space, and they will continue to be very important. But today the world is changing faster than the systems we rely on," said Hilla Haddad Chmelnik, co-founder and CEO of Moonshot Space, at Calcalist and Bank Leumi’s Mind the Tech Berlin 2025 conference. She opened her remarks by explaining that she wanted to share "why space is becoming the next frontier in security, why speeds matter, and how a new approach to launch can help us shape the future."

She continued: "Modern warfare is moving into new areas. Today, armies depend on their assets in space, on high-speed movement, and advanced communications. Hypersonic speed changes everything we know, how quickly you can detect, how quickly you can react, and how much time your enemy has to respond. On a real battlefield, the difference between success and failure can be as little as one centimeter or even one second."

Haddad Chmelnik shared part of her background: "I started out studying aerospace engineering. I served in the Israeli Air Force and led missile testing programs. Later, I joined the team that developed Iron Dome, and that’s clearly the best line on my resume," she said with a smile. "This experience taught me how innovation can happen even when time is short and resources are limited, and everyone around me says it's impossible."

She later moved into government roles. "I started at the Ministry of Transportation and led national rail and highway projects. Later, I became Director General of the Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology. My journey connected security, deep space, and engineering on a national scale, and it led me directly to where I am today."

Haddad Chmelnik described the global shift: "Hypersonic objects are now moving at extreme speeds. We saw it in Ukraine; we saw it in the Iran war. Countries need rapid, ongoing access to space. And supply chains require launch systems that are cheaper, lighter, and easier to manufacture. The question is not whether to replace rockets, they are here to stay. The real question is what additional layer we need to add."

She pointed to China’s progress: "China has clearly understood this. They recently launched a missile-sized object at extremely high speed using electromagnetic power, with no fuel at all. And it’s not just a small test. China is building huge facilities, national test sites, and full-scale machines that are treated as a strategic priority. In the West, we had developed such systems by the 1970s, and then we abandoned them. China is already building real systems and a whole ecosystem around them. This creates a growing gap in hypersonic speed and rapid access to space."

She addressed the challenge directly: "Trying to compete with China may sound ambitious, especially for a small team from Israel. But a few years ago, intercepting a missile in space with perfect timing also sounded impossible. Today, the Arrow 3 system, born from an impossible idea, has become a reality and is operating right here in Germany, defending your skies. So yes, it’s ambitious. But impossible things become real when great engineers move fast and work purposefully."

Haddad Chmelnik introduced Moonshot: "And that’s why I created Moonshot. We are developing a kinetic launch system powered by electricity and electromagnetic forces, connecting two strengths that almost never meet, the Israeli high-tech industry and the Israeli defense industry. Two of the country’s engines of strength working together on the same mission."

She explained the technology: "We accelerate a capsule inside a long tube lined with magnetic coils. The coils fire with perfect timing, creating an electromagnetic wave that propels the capsule forward. This allows for very high acceleration with almost no friction. It’s precise, electric, clean, and controlled by software."

"I’ll tell you a secret," she added. "It’s really, really uncomfortable inside. Electromagnetic launch can create almost 1,000 G-forces, so it wouldn’t be useful for humans. But this technology could be perfect for fuel, water, or hypersonic test models."

She described the first application: "Our first application is hypersonic testing. Today, hypersonic testing is rare, slow, and extremely expensive. With electromagnetic launch, we can run multiple tests in a single day. Faster learning, faster design, and all at a lower cost."

Haddad Chmelnik stressed that this is not theoretical: "We are already operating the system on a small scale in our region. We perform about 10 launches every day and increase the speed every week. Even at this scale, we see the physics and engineering working. The potential is becoming real."

She spoke about the team: "Our team, the same engineers who built Israel’s operational defense systems, turns technology into practical capabilities. We have engineers from across Israel’s security ecosystem: from Elbit, IAI, Rafael, the Arrow Project, and I come from Iron Dome."

Haddad Chmelnik concluded: "To meet future challenges, we need to add a new platform, not to give up on rockets, but to expand what the ecosystem can be. Electromagnetic launch is the next platform. It adds frequency and resilience, and launches can be powered by electricity rather than fuel. Electrons will always be cheaper than fuel. Moonshot is building this layer. We are starting with fast hypersonic tests, and over time we aim to give countries broader and more flexible access to space."

Watch her full remarks in the video above.