Since 2012, he has been developing the SPECULOOS project within his unit and in partnership with the University of Cambridge and the University of Jeda. The aim of this project is to study ultracool dwarfs in order to detect habitable planetary systems that are close to Earth. He is also involved in the preparation of the CHEOPS space mission which involves placing a small space telescope in orbit to examine already known exoplanets in more detail. Michaël Gillon is a member of the board and scientific team of the CHEOPS mission.