The US plans to establish a permanent and economically viable lunar presence rather than repeating the short-lived expeditions of the Apollo era, Amazon CEO Jeffrey Bezos said.
"Today we're going to do it at a lower cost and going to the Moon to stay," Bezos, founder of US space company Blue Origin, told Fox News on Wednesday. "It won't just be a mission and leave. It will be a real sustainable lunar base. That's how we'll explore the Moon and find interesting things."
Bezos contrasted modern commercial spaceflight with the 1969 lunar program, explaining that the initial effort required "almost 3% of GDP" to execute. He noted that establishing routine cargo delivery systems remains a vital precursor to crewed landings and said: "There's every reason to believe that we can put humans on the Moon in 2028."
Highlighting strategic competition, Bezos emphasized that Washington must outpace Beijing and said: "We have to beat China to the Moon. I believe we will beat China to the Moon."
He characterized the Moon as an indispensable logistical stepping stone before attempting crewed missions to Mars, noting that personnel can reach the destination in three days without waiting for complex launch windows. Operating from the lunar surface also requires "28 times less energy to lift something" due to lower gravity while offering abundant local resources, he said.
Blue Origin serves as a central commercial partner in NASA's Artemis campaign, developing the Human Landing System designed to transport astronauts to the lunar surface for the Artemis V mission.
Addressing artificial intelligence oversight, Bezos advocated for targeted restrictions rather than heavy regulations on core foundation models. "You want to regulate murder...you don't want to regulate knives," he said, arguing that governments should focus on harmful applications and malicious actors rather than the tool.
