Aetherflux, a space-based solar power company founded by Robinhood co-founder Baiju Bhatt, has appointed veteran legal and business strategist Joe Yaffe as its Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Chief Legal Officer (CLO), marking a significant leadership milestone as the company accelerates plans for space-powered energy and computing infrastructure.
The appointment comes on the heels of Aetherflux’s $90 million Series A fundraising round and the company’s announcement that it is targeting Q1 2027 for the first launch of its ambitious “Galactic Brain” orbital data center project. In his dual executive role, Yaffe will oversee the company’s global operations, legal framework, and regulatory strategy, areas considered critical as commercial activity in low Earth orbit rapidly expands.
A Strategic Hire for a Complex Mission
Aetherflux founder and CEO Baiju Bhatt said the company is deliberately building leadership capable of navigating both technological and regulatory complexity.
“Aetherflux is tackling two of the hardest problems in the modern world: energy abundance and the infrastructure for next-generation compute,” Bhatt stated. “Joe brings a rare combination of operational discipline and strategic judgment, having guided companies through their most complex stages of growth.”
Yaffe joins Aetherflux after more than three decades at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, where he most recently served as Managing Partner of the firm’s Palo Alto office. During his legal career, he advised high-growth technology firms, founders, and boards on governance, strategic transactions, and executive compensation.
His transition from legal advisor to executive operator highlights Aetherflux’s intent to build not only cutting-edge space technology, but also the organizational and compliance infrastructure required to commercialize space-based solar power at scale.
Building the Backbone for Space-Based Energy
Based at Aetherflux’s headquarters in San Carlos, California, Yaffe will play a central role as the company advances multiple parallel programs, including space-solar satellites capable of wirelessly transmitting energy from orbit to Earth using infrared laser technology.
“Joining Aetherflux is a rare opportunity to contribute to a mission that will fundamentally change how humanity accesses and uses energy,” Yaffe said. “The company is uniquely positioned to address the energy constraints slowing the global race in artificial intelligence.”
The “Galactic Brain” and the Future of Compute
Aetherflux’s long-term vision extends beyond energy delivery. The company’s Galactic Brain project aims to deploy solar-powered orbital data centers, designed to meet the massive and rapidly growing energy demands of artificial intelligence workloads.
By operating in space, the project seeks to bypass the five-to-eight-year timelines typically required to build large terrestrial data centers, offering a faster and potentially more sustainable alternative. The initiative builds on Aetherflux’s earlier work supplying resilient power solutions to remote and contested environments.
The company plans to launch its first energy-transmitting satellite in 2026, followed by the initial Galactic Brain satellite in early 2027.
