Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin challenges NASA contract awarded to SpaceX for Artemis moon lander

Blue Origin announced Monday that it is protesting NASA's decision earlier this month to award a single $2.9 billion contract to SpaceX for development of a new lunar lander for the agency's Artemis moon program, rejecting competing proposals from Blue Origin and Dynetics.

"NASA has executed a flawed acquisition for the Human Landing System program and moved the goalposts at the last minute," Blue Origin, owned by Amazon-founder Jeff Bezos, said in a statement. "In NASA's own words, it has made a 'high risk' selection," the statement continued. "Their decision eliminates opportunities for competition, significantly narrows the supply base and not only delays, but also endangers America's return to the moon. Because of that, we've filed a protest with the GAO (Government Accountability Office)."