Moon Trades Technologies: Building the future of climate-conscious mining innovation

Dr. Wintta Ghebreiyesus in the cockpit of an aircraft at the Elevate Cross Country Tour.

When Dr. Wintta Ghebreiyesus was 10 years old, she watched the Space Shuttle Columbia break apart on re-entry and decided to become an engineer so that something like that would never happen again.

Today, as founder and CEO of Ajax-based Moon Trades Technologies, that drive to build safer, smarter systems hasn't changed--only the scale has. Through artificial intelligence and autonomous vehicles, Moon Trades Technologies is revolutionizing mining exploration, both on earth and in space, helping make the industry safer, more efficient and climate-conscious. 

PEBBLE^TM: It’s like "Google Maps for mining"

After speaking with more than 100 professionals across the mining industry, Wintta identified a staggering problem: $4.2 billion is spent every year on failed mineral exploration. Geologists and drill operators go into the field to take samples and create boreholes, but ultimately only one in 1,000 exploration sites is economically feasible.

Wintta recalls speaking with someone whose client had accumulated a petabyte of geological data, historical drill logs collected over two decades that remained largely unused. She goes on to share that while the mining industry sits on a goldmine of data, it has a huge challenge.

"The mining industry doesn't have a data problem. They have a data interpretation problem," she explains. "And with the advent of AI, we can use that data more efficiently and go that much further.”

This is why the team created PEBBLE^TM, an AI-powered terrain analysis and geospatial intelligence platform that fundamentally changes mineral exploration by combining three layers of data, including satellite aerial data, ground truthing, and onboard geochemical analysis from autonomous vehicles using advanced sensors like X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). PEBBLE collects 50 times more data than a team of geologists, operates in environments where humans can't safely go, and works around the clock.

In many cases, external teams take weeks to return analysis, by which point exploration teams have already moved on. PEBBLE's real-time, in-the-field approach changes the game. “What we're building is an AI terrain analysis and geospatial intelligence platform. I coined it ‘the Google Maps for mining.’”

Moon Trades Technologies is creating solutions to reduce the need for exploratory drilling, lower the carbon footprint of mining operations, and extend beyond mining into agriculture, environmental assessments, remediation and, possibly, into space. Wintta is exploring space applications through the Canadian Space Agency, investigating in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) for lunar exploration, bringing her childhood dreams full circle.

“We're teaming up with a Vancouver-based company as well as a company in the U.S. that has worked with NASA for several years,” Wintta explains. “We have a global lens. We know that our impact is not only within our borders here in Durham, but also in Ontario, Canada and around the world.”

The Moon Trades team at Centennial College.

Breaking into tech: A non-linear path

Wintta's education and entrepreneurial journey to create Moon Trades Technologies was as complex and multifaceted as her company. “After completing a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), I discovered a passion for controls and avionics,” notes Wintta. “Next, I pursued a master's in acoustics while working on SpaceX's Hyperloop project” – an experience that showed her how innovation can transform entire industries.

But Wintta wasn't done yet.

She also pursued a PhD in acoustics for aircraft cabin design, which she did during the Covid-19 pandemic when lab-based research had to go virtual. Throughout her doctoral work, she juggled her studies and being the first in her immediate family to complete post-secondary education. 

"I felt like I had that weight on my shoulders," she recalls. "There were definitely moments where I thought ‘this is a lot harder than it ever could be’, but I knew I had to complete it."

Despite the challenges of completing her PhD during a global shutdown, Wintta launched her first venture, Agri-tech Canada, which explores nature-based carbon capture for mining site remediation, and that was just the start of bigger

Wintta with the SpaceX Dragon.

In 2024, Wintta launched Moon Trades through Nobellum, a tech accelerator serving the Black entrepreneurial community. Her company was recently accepted into the Black Founders Network at the University of Toronto’s scale program. As a Black woman leading a deep-tech company, she has made intentional choices about her ecosystem.

"Some days are easier than other days. I'm constantly having to prove myself, which I use like it’s fuel," she says. "But I think we do still have a long way to go. STEM as a whole is still significantly underrepresented."

Since inception, Moon Trades Technologies has been able to scale its work in meaningful ways—from accessing research talent at Ontario Tech University and its ACE wind tunnel, to tapping into regional innovation support at Oshawa’s Spark Centre. She most appreciates the support from the local business community in Durham Region.

“For founders building at the intersection of innovation and impact, Durham Region offers a rare combination of technical infrastructure, talent and space to experiment,” explains Wintta.

The region’s access to land, combined with supportive government policies, also makes it an ideal environment for testing autonomous vehicles and operating in data-denied navigation environments. 

What's next for Moon Trades?

Moon Trades is preparing for its first series of pilot projects, onboarding interns, exploring academic partnerships and scaling the business. From the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster to lunar and mineral exploration AI, Wintta’s journey shows how personal inspiration, technical excellence, and purposeful entrepreneurship can reshape entire industries.

And she's just getting started.