Senator on Harris's short list for VP started spy balloon company funded, in part, by China --Kelly is a former astronaut and U.S. Navy captain who has represented Arizona in the U.S. Senate since 2020 | 28 July 2024 | Before becoming a senator, Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., was not only an astronaut, but he also co-founded a company that specializes in spy balloons, which was funded, in part, by a venture capitalist in China with close ties to the Chinese Communist Party. Kelly, 60, who is reportedly on a short list of running mate contenders under consideration by Vice President [sic] Kamala Harris, co-founded Tucson, Arizona-based World View in 2012 with a vision to provide space tourism using stratospheric balloons. While Kelly's company started out with a focus on space tourism via balloons, the vision evolved with the maturing of the company’s technology.