Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced he will travel to space aboard Blue Origin's first crewed spaceflight with his brother, Mark, and a winner of auction for a seat on Blue Origin's New Shepard spacecraft, whose identity is yet to be revealed.
"Ever since I was five years old, I’ve dreamed of traveling to space. On July 20th, I will take that journey with my brother. The greatest adventure, with my best friend," Bezos said in an Instagram post.
The company closed the first round of the auction in May, saying it had received nearly 5,200 bidders from 136 countries. The biggest bid, however, was not disclosed.
Founded in 2000, Blue Origin is Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’ private space flight company, which aims to send paying customers into space for either commercial or tourism purposes. The company also works with the US space and defence industries.
Earlier in April, the company announced it would soon begin selling tickets to those individuals who are interested in space travel. The same month, Blue Origin successfully blasted a New Shepard rocket into suborbital space and then landed the vehicle back on planet Earth in an upright position.