Space manufacturing is a killer app of low cost access to space. Microgravity facilitates the manufacture of a diverse array of very economically valuable products.

Pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, fibre optics, carbon nanotubes & 3D printed organs. https://fiftyyears.substack.com/p/varda-space-industries
Pharmaceutical research, development and production would benefit from better protein crystallization for structure-based drug development; high quality protein assembly; better production of amorphous therapeutic compounds.

Pharma companies have partnered with ISS for research.
Semiconductors: Ultra vacuum of space facilitates thin film manufacture.
Wakeshield project manufactured thin film semiconductors 10,000x better than earth made.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S009457650000148X?via%3Dihub

Upcoming experiment: https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2020/nasa-to-demonstrate-first-of-its-kind-in-space-manufacturing-technique-for-telescope-mirrors

Latest gen silicon wafers cost > $130K/kg.
Fibre optics: ZBLAN has a theoretical attenuation 2 OOM > silica fibre optics:
https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/conference-proceedings-of-spie/11276/112760R/Breaking-the-silica-ceiling--ZBLAN-based-opportunities-for-photonics/10.1117/12.2542350.short?SSO=1

It could reduce by 15x the # of required repeaters. Deployed on the trans atlantic cable, would save $100M.

Gravity renders earth manufactured ZBLAN unperformant.
Cost of access to space has fallen over time. Starship intends to drop the $/kg cost to under 1% of current levels (Musk has a target of "~$10/kg".
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1258580078218412033?s=20
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