Astranis

Astranis is a San Francisco-based satellite manufacturer and operator that designs a class of small, radiation-hardened spacecraft for high orbits, principally geostationary orbit (GEO), positioned between conventional low-Earth-orbit smallsats and large legacy GEO satellites. Its core product line, MicroGEO, delivers dedicated satellite broadband; the company also states it is working across higher orbits to support government science, position-navigation-timing (PNT), and communications missions, with contracts in place with the U.S. Space Force, NASA, and other government partners.

The product portfolio includes Astranis Prime (first launched 2023, beginning with the Ka-band Arcturus satellite), UtilitySat (described as the first multi-mission commercial GEO satellite, able to run broadband missions in Ka, Ku, and Q/V bands and relocate or repoint on orbit), Omega (a higher-performance broadband system, launching soon), Nexus (a MicroGPS design for the Space Force's next-generation Resilient GPS program, with a stated 2028 launch date), and Perceptor (a space domain awareness spacecraft with onboard propulsion and a sensor suite for observing and characterizing objects in GEO). Key technical elements cited by the company are on-board propulsion enabling repeated relocation, a proprietary software-defined radio that reallocates bandwidth and power across 7 GHz of simultaneous bandwidth, and radiation-hardened electronics that have survived multiple solar storms on orbit.

Astranis designs, manufactures, tests, and operates its satellites in-house at a 153,000 sq. ft. headquarters at Historic Pier 70 in Northern California, including in-house testing, manufacturing, and machining. As of 2026 the company reports five satellites on orbit, more than 10 satellites on contract, a backlog of more than $1 billion in commercial satellite services, and roughly 450-500 employees.

Founding story

Founded in 2015. CEO John Gedmark previously ran the Commercial Spaceflight Federation for five years before starting the company, and CTO Ryan McLinko was an engineering lead at satellite maker Planet Labs. A third-party profile states the company was founded by Gedmark, McLinko, and John Finney around the observation that the satellite industry offered only large, expensive GEO spacecraft or capital-intensive LEO constellations, leaving room for smaller, cost-effective satellites able to operate in the high-orbit radiation environment.

Business model

Astranis builds and operates dedicated GEO satellites for individual customers rather than selling shared capacity on large multi-tenant spacecraft; a third-party profile describes a turnkey bandwidth-as-a-service model in which the company leases dedicated satellite capacity to regional telecom operators, ISPs, and government agencies. The company also acts as a prime contractor on U.S. government satellite programs.

Revenue derives from satellite services contracts and government program contracts; the company reports more than $1 billion of satellite services sold and a commercial backlog of more than $1 billion. A third-party profile characterizes the commercial side as recurring leased-capacity revenue.

Traction

Five GEO satellites on orbit as of 2026, with the first (Arcturus) launched in 2023 and four more since; more than 10 satellites on contract; more than $1 billion of satellite services sold and a commercial backlog above $1 billion; six additional Prime satellites sold; team of roughly 450-500 people; selected for initial phases of multiple U.S. government programs of record as prime.

Latest developments

On 2026-05-06 Astranis announced $450 million in new capital — a $300 million Series E co-led by Snowpoint Ventures and Franklin Templeton plus a delayed-draw credit facility of up to $155 million from Trinity Capital — bringing total raised above $1.2 billion, to be used to accelerate commercial satellite production and support U.S. government programs of record (PTS-G, Resilient GPS, Andromeda). In August 2026 it launched Perceptor, expanding into space domain awareness and on-orbit maneuverability. Other recent items include the Oman MB Group partnership (January 2026), General (Ret.) John E. Hyten joining as chairman of a new strategic advisory board (March 2026), a Thaicom contract for THAICOM-9, bringing Anuvu satellites online, and a dedicated satellite for Taiwan with Chunghwa Telecom.