James Ehrhart

James Ehrhart (Jim) graduated as an Industrial Engineer in 1986 and went on to apply systems engineering education as an information technology architect at leading global corporations. During his 28 year career with Accenture, he served clients in around the globe, including 10 years in Asia and 14 years in Europe.

Jim is currently a director and advisor to several startups, including:

• Paracosma, a provider of virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) solutions
• Essential Aero, an autonomous drone and robot inspection system
• Olis Robotics, a remote management platform for industrial robotics

In addition to his B.S. degree in Industrial Engineering, he holds an International Minor in German Studies and a graduate certificate in Technology Innovation all from the University of Illinois –Urbana Champaign. His international career was kick-started by his involvement in IAESTE program at the U of I, through which he had internships in Germany, Finland and China while he was a student. He is fluent in English and German and has a 600 day Duolingo streak going in Romanian. He currently divides his time between in Saint Helena, California and Bucharest, Romania.

Jim avidly follows developments in space exploration and has an extensive portfolio of investments in space-related companies, several of which he also supports as an adviser. Jim served as Crew Engineer and photographer for an analog space mission to the Mars Desert Research Station in Hanksville, Utah and is an aspiring private astronaut. Jim supports many space-related organizations by providing merchandising capabilities to assist them with their communications and community building. He runs online shops for the Mars Society, Earthlight Foundation and Spacekind, as one of many “retirement” activities.