On Orbit

Startup PiLogic is taking a unique approach to AI for the space industry, developing what it calls "exact AI," a type of AI in the category of automated reasoning. It differs from LLMs in that it's based on mathematically exact models that don't require high levels of compute.

In this week's episode, PiLogic CEO Johannes Waldstein joins On Orbit for a conversation about applying exact AI to anomaly detection, diagnostics,...

While orbital data centers have drawn attention and driven headlines this year, there's another story unfolding in spaceborne computing — the evolution of the space edge. It's a shift to higher-powered satellites that can process data at the edge, right where it's collected. Voyager Technologies CTO Paul Tilghman joins On Orbit this week to unpack this shift and how it supports the rise of proliferated data collecte...

As conflicts have erupted around the world, governments and MoDs are recognizing the urgent, immediate need for space-based intelligence. At the same time, the cost to build and launch satellites has dropped significantly, and it's changing how governments acquire satellite imagery and Al-enabled intelligence capabilities, driving them to embrace sovereign solutions from commercial partners.

This week, BlackSky CTO Patrick O'N...

As AI is driving explosive growth in data center construction on Earth, there's accelerating interest in moving some of the computing infrastructure to orbit. The past few months have seen a flurry of announcements for future orbital data centers. Is this the latest hype cycle for the space industry, or a greenfield opportunity? The answer may be somewhere in the middle. 

In this week's On Orbit episo...

What can the hostile environment of the Arctic teach us about space? David Marsh recently returned from a first-hand journey to find out. He joins On Orbit this week after wrapping up an Arctic expedition where he spent 29 days skiing more than 560 kilometers across Greenland with a group of researchers. 

Over the trip he worked on a number of research projects like investigating the use of LEO satell...

Over just a few years, the ability to connect everyday cell phones to satellite has gone from a milestone tech demonstration to a feature that's deployed in millions of phones. Mindel De La Torre has watched this evolution closely and been a part of the regulatory advancements to make it possible. Formerly chief of the FCC's International Bureau, Mindel then led regulatory and international strategy for Omnispace before joining Sky...

There's a lot of hype in the space industry and bold projections about how demand for satellite broadband, direct-to-device, and more. But every year, the Satellite Industry Association provides a clear view into the industry's financial performance in the annual State of the Satellite Industry Report.

This week I'm joined by SIA President Tom Stroup to dig into the 2026 report, which tracked rapid growth — the number of sate...

SWAP — size, weight, and power — is a defining feature of space engineering constraints. As new technologies and designs have opened up options for size and weight, power is still a limiting constraint. 

Longtime space executive Andrew Rush turned his attention to the issue of power in space with Star Catcher, the company he co-founded in 2024. Star Catcher has the bold ambition to break t...

How do you future-proof your satellite network to thrive in an increasingly connected world? It's a key question that network operators are asking as they navigate new technologies like 5G, non-terrestrial networks (NTN), multi-orbit architectures, and AI-driven applications.

This week, Brian Jakins, senior vice president of Sales at ST Engineering iDirect joins the On Orbit podcast for a conversation abou...

Based in Milan, Italy, SatEnlight is an optical communications technology company with a terminal that stacks multiple beams on top of each other, arranged in what looks like a multi-layered spiral staircase of lasers. 

SatEnlight CEO and co-founder Matteo Vismara and his co-founder developed the product based on years of scientific research in Physics and work based at the CERN Large Hadron Collider in Geneva. 

SSC Space has a mission to help its customers access space — whether that's spacecraft operations and engineering, operating the Esrange launch center in Sweden, or its global ground network. With 54 years of operations, SSC Space has deep experience in space missions. 

Now, the company is expanding its ground systems business with SSC Space Go, designed for commercial companies with small satellites in LEO. This we...

As a young electrical engineer at RCA Corporation, Shey Sabripour was inspired by the company's legacy of contributing to space missions, and he wanted to make his own mark by establishing a company that builds technology in the United States.

He went on to found CesiumAstro 10 years ago, which is now at a pivotal moment in its growth journey. He joins On Orbit this week after the company recently raised $270 million...

Emile de Rijk started Swissto12 with a simple goal — to make access to Geostationary Orbit (GEO) faster and more affordable. In order to achieve that, the company had to think smaller. From its origins as a startup, Swissto12 is now coming of age as a disruptive European satellite manufacturer.

This week, Swissto12 CEO Emile de Rijk joins On Orbit to talk about the company's cutting edge payload technology and ...

Semiconductors are foundational to satellite operations, powering everything from communications payloads, to sensing, and propulsion control. As CEO of Spirit Electronics, Marti McCurdy's work is at the heart of the semiconductor supply chain. 

Spirit Electronics offers semiconductor services that range from ASIC design and foundry, to wafer processing, an...

Investment in space infrastructure hit a new record in 2025, reaching $22.2 billion, according to Space Capital's latest report. This level of investment surpassed the previous record of 2021. 

Chad Anderson, CEO and founder of Space Capital, joins On Orbit this week to share his takeaways from 2025 from Space Capital's recent Space Investment Quarterly report, alongside predictions for 2026. 

Anderson says the ...

Data centers in space have been a hot topic in the last few months as a potential future solution to the limitations of running massive data centers on Earth. Ramon.Space, which builds edge computing and onboard processing systems has been preparing for this future for years.

In this episode, Ramon.Space CEO Avi Shabtai shares the concept of a distributed architecture data center in space, with many satellites acting as nodes in a ...

There's a growing understanding that space-based capabilities are critical for national defense strategies, and defense demand for commercial space systems has been a key trend in 2025 influencing both satellite communications, manufacturing, and imagery and sensing.

2025 brought the announcement of the Golden Dome planned missile defense architecture, and a ste...

Forecasts on the arrival time for quantum computing vary greatly – from "it will be here in a decade" to "it's already here." There is consensus on the fact that it's coming, and when it does, it will change the way we build and protect networks in space.

In this episode of our Future Space Economy webcast series, we're joined by experts in the field to help understand how quantum computing and quantum encryption will most l...

Is space crowded? Although there's been such a large increase in satellites in orbit, it's not a simple question. On Orbit revisits the question with Chiara Manfletti, CEO of Portugal-based space traffic management company Neuraspace. Chiara emphasizes the need for better coordin...