SAN FRANCISCO, USA, October 10, 2025 – Loft Orbital, a global space infrastructure company, today announced that former Deputy Secretary of Defense Dr. Kathleen Hicks has been appointed to Loft Orbital’s Board of Directors. With more than 30 years of experience integrating advanced technologies into defense and intelligence operations, Dr. Hicks will bring unique experience to advise Loft Orbital (Loft) in the evolution of the company’s vision to simplify access to space. 

Dr. Hicks served as the 35th Deputy Secretary of Defense (DSD), overseeing day-to-day global operations and introducing technologies to support the U.S. military. Her team launched technology accelerators to triple defense investment in artificial intelligence and emerging technologies, and expanded collaboration with the commercial space community. She previously served in a number of other senior government roles under both Republican and Democratic administrations, as well as on the Board of Directors for the Aerospace Corporation.

As an international company, Loft works with government and commercial customers around the world through Loft Federal, Loft France, and its Orbitworks joint venture in the UAE. Dr. Hicks brings a unique perspective on geopolitical and international affairs that will guide Loft toward building more robust mission services to the U.S. government and allied nations. Her high-level government experience will guide the company’s efforts to build trusted partners across these regions. 

“We are honored to have Dr. Kathleen Hicks join our board and lend her unique experience at the highest levels of government to Loft,” said Pierre-Damien Vaujour, CEO of Loft. “We are eager to learn from her leadership, decision-making, and strategic vision as we expand our role as a trusted partner to U.S. and allied governments.”

Dr. Hicks is also a non-resident Senior Fellow at both Harvard University’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs and The Johns Hopkins University’s Kissinger Center for Global Affairs. She has served as Senior Vice President and Director of the International Security Program for the Center of Strategic and International Studies.

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In an era defined by persistent geopolitical uncertainty, the imperative for nations to secure their strategic interests has never been more pronounced. From evolving security threats to the need for advanced environmental monitoring, the ability to control space infrastructure underpins national security, economic development, and global competitiveness. National leaders need simple, reliable, and transparent solutions to maintain access to space. 

Growing Demand for Sovereign Space Capabilities

Around the world, demand for space is accelerating. Emerging economies once dependent on foreign providers are now seeking to establish domestic programs. Established spacefaring nations are expanding their capabilities to meet new challenges and maintain their competitive edge.

The use cases are increasingly complex, spanning defense and civilian applications alike:

• National Security: intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, secure communications, and missile early warning.
• Environmental & Disaster Monitoring: disaster response, sustainable agriculture, weather monitoring, and water resource management.
• Connectivity & Navigation: broadband access for remote regions, direct-to-device networks, and precise positioning for infrastructure and autonomous systems.

Each nation’s objectives are unique, but they share a common challenge: how to deploy capabilities quickly, reliably, and affordably—while maintaining sovereignty.

Legacy Barriers to National Space Programs

But the path to achieving these goals has historically been fraught with challenges. Traditional aerospace companies have lengthy development cycles and a lack of transparency regarding the underlying technology and operational control. By the time systems are launched, the technology may already be obsolete and no longer able to meet emerging threats and opportunities.

The legacy approach to space infrastructure development has also proved to be complex and prohibitively expensive. National leaders, seeking to quickly acquire critical capabilities, have at times been forced to accept these limitations, only to find themselves heavily invested in systems that were difficult to adapt, costly to maintain, and lacked the agility to respond to rapidly changing requirements. 

Recognizing these challenges, a new generation of providers seeking to capture market share have begun promising risky solutions – from unrealistic timelines to infeasible technological capabilities – based on minimal space heritage. Nations, particularly those new to the space arena, have often felt burned by experiences where they were offered opaque, “black box” solutions. 

The result: governments are forced into a false choice between slow, inflexible legacy providers and risky, unproven newcomers.

A New Approach for Simple Access to Space

The future of national space programs demands a new paradigm—fast, simple, and reliable access to orbit that balances sovereignty with proven commercial expertise. Loft Orbital and Orbitworks offer a novel “Space Infrastructure as a Service” model that streamlines the entire process, from mission design and payload integration to launch and in-orbit operations. 

1. Speed to Orbit
   Loft drastically reduces time from concept to orbit. By maintaining satellites in inventory and streamlining integration with a turnkey satellite platform, nations can deploy capabilities in months instead of years—ensuring assets are operational before threats or opportunities emerge. This approach eliminates the need for nations to invest in costly and time-consuming satellite development, allowing them to focus on their specific mission requirements. We provide the expertise and infrastructure, while empowering nations to retain control over their assets.
2. Simplicity and Flexibility
   Simplicity translates to user-friendly interfaces and modular architectures that de-mystify satellite operations and reduce the burden of technical expertise. Organizations can leverage AI-driven applications that maximize utility of the satellites while customizing the operations to national needs. This model can also be flexibly deployed out of the United States, France, and the United Arab Emirates.
3. Proven Reliability
   Loft combines commercial agility with spaceflight heritage. Every mission is backed by flight-proven technology, rigorous testing, and a record of operational performance. Nations retain full control over their assets, avoiding reliance on opaque or untested systems. This ensures that space programs are not just acquired, but truly owned and operated by the nations themselves, thereby enhancing sovereignty and long-term strategic resilience.

By offering a rapid, reliable, and cost-effective path to orbit, Loft Orbital is unlocking the full potential of space infrastructure, enabling nations of all sizes to leverage the power of satellite technology for their security, prosperity, and strategic autonomy in a rapidly changing world.

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At Loft, our mission is to make space simple. We’re a software-centric aerospace company, which means we apply modern software principles across everything we build—from our ground systems to our flight software. And AI isn’t something we’ve added on after the fact—it’s built into how we operate and scale.

We’ve developed software that lets our customers deploy their own AI models directly onboard our satellites. That allows them to process data like imagery or RF signals right at the edge, extract the insights they need, and only send back what’s truly valuable. It makes the whole system faster and more efficient.

In this post, I’ll share how we’ve brought AI into our workflow at Loft, how it’s helping us manage complexity and move quicker, and why having the right foundation—and the right partners—has made all the difference.

Bringing AI into the workflow with GitHub Copilot

Our first step into AI at Loft was using GitHub Copilot as a coding assistant. Right away, it made a noticeable difference. It helped our developers write code faster, with more accuracy, and freed them up from the repetitive parts of the job. Personally, I remember my a-ha moment clearly—Copilot was able to predict what I was about to write based on my existing code, and it got it right. That was the moment I realized how transformative this tool could be.

Today, every developer at Loft has access to Copilot, and it’s become a core part of our workflow. One area where it really shines is testing. Large language models are great at spotting patterns, so they can suggest test cases we might not think of—helping us expand our coverage and improve the quality of our codebase overall.

To help our teams adopt AI, we rolled it out gradually, letting teams voluntarily opt in and explore tools at their own pace. That approach worked. People saw the value right away—in the quality of their work, the ease of their workflow, and even in how they felt about their day-to-day tasks. AI made the development experience faster, smoother, and more enjoyable.

Over time, our use of AI expanded beyond code. We started applying it to quality assessment, information management, and even our onboard systems. What began as a helpful assistant has become a foundational part of how we operate.

Smarter satellites, greater coordination, faster insights

Traditionally, satellite constellations had to downlink all collected data—imagery, RF signals, and more—to the ground for processing. That kind of data is heavy and transmitting it in full adds latency and complexity. At Loft, we process data at the edge, directly onboard the satellite. That allows us to extract the most valuable insights in real time and drastically reduce what needs to be transmitted. It wouldn’t be possible without AI models running locally to interpret the data.

We’re actively developing the ability for our satellites to self-task in response to events. For example, in the future, one satellite might detect a fire using a wide-angle camera, and an onboard AI model identifies a plume of smoke. That satellite could then automatically task another, with a more focused sensor, to take a closer image—without any human intervention. While still in progress, this kind of autonomous coordination helps us respond faster, reduce reliance on ground operations, and deliver actionable insights right when they’re needed.

Another example we’ve seen on our YAM-6 spacecraft is the ability to analyze an image, count the number of boats, and identify them—all onboard. That used to require downloading the full image file, known as raster data, which takes time. Now we can transform that image into lightweight metadata, just a few kilobytes, and transmit it instantly. Before, we’d have to wait 45 to 90 minutes for the satellite to pass over a ground station. With AI, we can use real-time data links that only support small payloads—and that’s where this transformation becomes critical. Instead of sending the entire image, we send just the insight.

Much like the cloud, we provide the onboard infrastructure—compute, storage, and physical accommodation—so our customers can focus on what really matters: collecting and processing their data. This model makes it possible for more organizations to become space companies, without having to build the entire environment from scratch. 

Real-world impact: Partnering to build an AI-first constellation

A great example of this approach in action is our partnership with Helsing, a leading defense tech company based in Europe. Together, we’re developing an AI-first satellite constellation designed to deliver fast, real-time insights—especially for defense applications like change detection and maritime monitoring.

In this collaboration, Loft is focused on providing the in-space compute infrastructure. We handle the hardware, the networking, and the cloudlike environment onboard the satellites. Helsing brings their specialized AI models, which they can deploy directly into our infrastructure. That allows them to process data at the edge, onboard the satellite, and generate insights without waiting for everything to come down to Earth first.

This kind of constellation—one made up of many satellites equipped with real-time AI processing—offers a major competitive advantage. In sectors like defense, where speed and precision are critical, being able to deliver insights immediately can make all the difference.

Building AI with security in mind

Another critical aspect of the aerospace industry is trust—specifically, privacy and security. That’s why, from the beginning, we’ve made sure that our use of AI is both safe and responsible.

We can introduce AI without compromising on security or reliability by keeping models local and performing audits on how data is handled. Our satellite architecture is built for exactly this kind of secure operation. We use sandboxing technologies that allow us to run each customer’s workload in a fully isolated environment. That means AI models only have access to the data they need, when they need it—nothing more.

This compartmentalized design ensures that every application runs in a controlled, protected space. It’s our way of making sure that AI in orbit is as trustworthy as it is powerful.

The future of operations: Spacecraft at scale

One of the challenges at Loft is that every satellite we build is unique—we’re essentially creating constellations of one-offs. Managing that kind of complexity at scale is challenging, especially for humans alone. As we launch this new generation of satellites over the next year, AI will be essential. It helps us make sense of the complexity, surface the right information at the right time, and automate key tasks so we can operate a diverse fleet that’s generating an enormous amount of data—efficiently and reliably.

For Loft, having a trusted partner like Microsoft has been critical to building a stable, scalable foundation as we grow. In fact, my foremost advice to organizations starting their AI journey is to find trusted partners. There are a lot of solutions out there, and it’s not always clear which ones will last. Choosing a partner like Microsoft gives you an infrastructure that’s robust and future-ready—and that kind of reliability is critical when you’re building for the long term.

Watch Microsoft’s AI Challenger | Loft Orbital video.

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March 21, 2025 Update: YAM-8 was deployed via SpaceX’s Transporter-13 rideshare mission on March 14 at 11:43 PM PT. Loft has successfully made contact with the satellite and commissioning is underway. All systems appear nominal.

Loft’s next satellite program, YAM-8, is ready for its upcoming launch. While YAM-8 is indeed ‘Yet Another Mission’ for Loft, it also represents a new era of enhanced capabilities for Loft’s customers as we begin deploying another standardized satellite platform: the Longbow.

As the very first Longbow headed to space, YAM-8 is hosting several unique customer and Loft-owned payloads on one of our hallmark rideshare satellites. The increased size, weight, and power (“SWaP”) of the Longbow platform allows us to fly larger payloads and more bandwidth- and compute-intensive missions. This gives customers access to all of the on-orbit resources they need while also delivering the capital efficiency of shared infrastructure.

In 2017, Loft was founded on a core value of being bus and payload agnostic. From Day 1, we decided to partner with multiple bus partners rather than build our own – instead, we focused our efforts on developing proprietary hardware (Hub) and software (Cockpit) abstraction layers. These abstraction layers allow us to rapidly integrate and operate any customer mission with minimal non-recurring engineering. The Hub provides a universal payload interface and Cockpit provides a highly flexible mission operations platform – with both abstraction layers remaining consistent regardless of the bus platform used.   

As a result of these abstraction layers, while the Longbow platform unlocks new capabilities, it still maintains the same easy-to-integrate architecture our customers have grown accustomed to. Integrating our Hub universal payload adapter with another standardized bus exemplifies Loft’s commitment to supporting customers through simple, rapid, and reliable payload deployments.

The Longbow platform is delivering on that commitment through three key areas:

1. Enhanced On-Orbit Capabilities: The Longbow’s increased size, weight, and power allow Loft to accommodate customers with larger, more demanding payloads across a broad spectrum of LEO missions. Whether customers are deploying power-hungry sensors, or need high-powered compute to run AI applications at the edge, Longbow provides the infrastructure required to rapidly collect and process data at a scale.
2. Faster Speed to Orbit: Loft is eliminating the traditionally lengthy satellite procurement process and dramatically reducing mission timelines by batch procuring Longbows so they are “on the shelf” when the customer is ready to fly. The Hub acts as an abstraction layer between customer payloads and the satellite bus, providing standardized interfaces for power, command & control, compute, and communications. By eliminating bus-level non-recurring engineering, customers avoid the lengthy design, development, and testing cycles associated with bus-level design changes – ultimately helping them get their payloads to orbit sooner and with less risk.
   
3. Highly Reliable Hardware: The Longbow satellite platform is based on the robust, flight-proven Airbus Arrow bus platform, which currently has over 600 copies in orbit today. Leveraging this proven bus platform allows customers to benefit from the reliability and economies of scale achieved through large-scale production – in turn reducing hardware risk on orbit and reducing total cost of ownership for Loft’s customers.
   

We have now integrated our technology with multiple bus providers and we intend to continue giving customers more off-the-shelf satellite options that will meet a wider range of mission requirements across the smallsat spectrum.

It’s an exciting time here at Loft that would not be made possible without the tireless effort of our team and our partners. We look forward to sharing more details about the customer missions onboard YAM-8 as we commission the satellite and begin delivering data to our customers.

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This partnership will harness AI-driven capabilities to deliver real-time intelligence and situational awareness to European defense and security stakeholders. The system is designed for critical missions such as border surveillance, troop movement tracking, and infrastructure protection, ensuring European forces maintain a decisive edge in any operational environment. 

The constellation will consist of multiple Loft satellites carrying state-of-the-art multi-sensor payloads, including a comprehensive suite of cameras and RF sensors. These payloads will leverage Helsing’s on-orbit AI processing to detect, identify, and classify military assets worldwide from Low Earth Orbit  in real-time. With high reactivity, short revisit periods, and low-latency data processing, this constellation will allow for tactical decision-making and rapid response capabilities. 

A Ground-breaking Approach to Tactical Decision-Making

Unlike traditional satellite intelligence systems that rely on post-mission data processing, this constellation will deliver immediate insights through onboard AI processing. High revisit rates will ensure continuous monitoring of key areas, while short response times and real-time alerts will give military decision-makers an operational advantage. 

“This partnership is a testament to Europe’s capacity to innovate and lead in the defence space,” said Pierre-Damien Vaujour, CEO of Loft. “Together with Helsing, we’re creating a capability that will provide European governmental and security actors with faster, more reliable intelligence, enabling them to act decisively in any situation.” 

Dr. Gundbert Scherf, co-founder of Helsing, said: “Ukraine has shown that the battlefield is getting ever more transparent, and the fusion of AI and satellite-based reconnaissance is key. Loft and Helsing want to build persistent, near-real-time intelligence capabilities for defence customers. Europe needs to have sovereign access to such space assets – and it needs it now. To accelerate this, both companies are investing their own capital.”

Marc Fontaine, president of Helsing France added: “This partnership combines New Space with New Defense approaches: providing, self-funded, as a service and rapidly the new capabilities required to support sovereign operations. By building on our presence in France and across Europe, we’re helping to shape the future of software-defined space systems.”

With satellite buses already under production and launch slots already secured, the satellites will be launched in 2026.

About Loft

Loft Orbital was founded in 2017 to address the challenge of speed-to-orbit in the space industry. Our mission is to make space simple for our customers by providing a fast, reliable, and straightforward path to deploy their missions. We deploy and operate customer missions with speed, simplicity, and reliability. We integrate, launch, and operate spacecraft, offering an end-to-end service model that includes turnkey integration and minimal nonrecurring engineering (NRE). We operate from our facilities in San Francisco, CA, Golden, CO, and Toulouse, France. In 2024, we established Orbitworks, a joint venture with Marlan Space, to create the Middle East’s first private space infrastructure company, further expanding our global reach and capabilities. With over 25 missions deployed and a team of more than 250 employees, we serve commercial and government customers worldwide. Our productized satellite platform and inventory-based approach eliminate lead time risks, allowing customers to focus on their payloads and missions.

About Helsing

Helsing is a new type of defence technology and artificial intelligence company. We provide precision mass and autonomous capabilities to democracies so that they can deter and protect. We founded Helsing out of a belief that safety and deterrence is only possible if we embrace software and artificial intelligence to make our forces more effective. With operations in the UK, Germany and France, Helsing has about 400 employees. Helsing has secured a series of government contracts, including the German Eurofighter Electronic Warfare upgrade, the AI infrastructure for the Future Combat Air System and a number of classified contracts in the maritime and land sectors.

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Spotlighting our team’s unique experience exhibits the exciting opportunities Loft has to offer. From contributing to space missions to fostering career growth, there’s an array of groundbreaking possibilities awaiting future team members at Loft.

Get to know some of our Lofties.

Ina Mihali

SRE (Site Reliability Engineer) Team Lead

I started at Loft as a team contributor and quickly evolved into a team lead, witnessing incredible growth both in the company and in myself along the way. While leading the SRE team, I’ve also been deeply involved in managing our cloud infrastructure, ensuring its reliability and scalability to support the company’s growing needs.

Moving to Toulouse for this journey was a big step, but one I don’t regret. Here, I’ve found myself surrounded by a team of caring, passionate, and genuinely loving people who inspire me every day. This environment has been the perfect space to challenge myself, embrace new opportunities, and contribute to the exciting work we do at Loft. 

Bastien Arata

Staff Software Engineer

I joined Loft during its humble beginnings nearly five years ago, after working on IoT infrastructure at Sigfox. Here I’ve grown from SRE (Site Reliability Engineer) to Staff Software Engineer, working with cutting-edge technology and all kinds of infrastructure wizardry like networking and orchestration. It’s a rare place where technical excellence takes top priority, and the team consists of rare humans I’d actually miss if I changed jobs. I’ve learned faster than a Falcon 9 at max throttle and it’s been such a fun ride so far.

Sarah Lappin

Software Engineer – Cockpit (Mission Operations Services) 

I joined Loft as an intern straight out of university and I’ve had the pleasure of working at Loft ever since. I started off in a two-person team working on an AI research and development project in San Francisco. I later joined our Cockpit team and moved to France to enjoy all that our beautiful French office has to offer, from the local markets to office wine and raclette nights.

It’s been a challenging and rewarding journey; one where Loft has enthusiastically encouraged me every step of the way. The opportunity to see different sides of the company both technically and geographically has been a fantastic experience and I love getting to work with such an international team everyday. 

Today, I am a Software Engineer on our Cockpit Team, specifically working on the Mission Operations Services responsible for the command and control of the satellites. What this means is I develop the tooling to talk and listen to our satellites. Recently, I have been focused on integrating our new bus platform into Cockpit enabling us to operationalize our satellites for upcoming missions.

Paul Faugeras

HIL (Hardware-In-the-Loop) Ecosystem Tech Lead

Starting as a back-end software engineer, for the past 2.5 years I’ve been involved with the Test Infrastructure team working on developing, deploying and maintaining next-generation test benches and tools for hardware-in-the-loop testing. Loft has recently entrusted me with the role of technical lead for this team. I never expected to step into a managerial role, but as the team evolved, this opportunity felt like a natural fit. Having been with the team the longest, I embraced the chance to lead and help shape our continued success. Working on such awesome cutting-edge technologies, alongside so many smart people, has been the highlight of my career so far. 

I also brought my passion for sailing into the mix, leading a crew of eight colleagues in the Ariane’s Cup, a three-day regatta for European spaceflight companies. Even though we didn’t win the race, we definitely brought the best vibes.

Since I joined Loft, we’ve scaled from a few satellites in orbit to having multiple launches and missions manifested in the coming years. Regardless of the challenges that we might face, I always feel ready to take them on with my team and bring them to the finish line, and beyond.

Bella Acevedo Rodriguez

Customer Operations Engineer

After ten years in satellite operations and building rockets, I took the leap of a lifetime: I sold everything I owned in the U.S. and moved to France to join Loft as a Customer Operations Engineer. This move hasn’t been easy, but it’s been worth it. Now I get to work on diverse missions that directly impact people’s everyday lives. 

We’ve deployed satellite missions that monitor agricultural growth worldwide, enabling farmers to optimize yields and promote sustainable practices. This work exemplifies how we leverage space technology to create a better future for Earth. 

At Loft, I’ve had the opportunity to fly satellites, build payload interfaces, and collaborate with customers to make their visions a reality. It’s tough, challenging, and endlessly exciting. This job is one of the most rewarding experiences of my career and I’m proud to contribute to groundbreaking missions alongside an amazing team.

Emma Vatine

Software Engineer – Test, Validation, and Operations

I’ve had such an incredible journey over the past 5 years working at Loft. I joined when we were just a team of 25, and now we’re nearly 250 strong. During this time, I’ve worn many hats, from helping establish the company in Toulouse, France while our roots were in San Francisco, to growing and learning skills for software development, satellite operations, and even leading the commissioning of one of our satellites.

Currently, I’m focused on operationalizing our next-generation satellites, ensuring it’s ready for seamless in-orbit operations. Every day brings new challenges and opportunities to contribute to the growth and success of our space infrastructure, and it’s been amazing to be part of this adventure from the start!

Caleb MacLachlan

Head of Integration

Loft is my 5th “New Space” company, after stints at Skybox, Planet, Astra, and ATLAS. The four and a half years I’ve spent at Loft is the longest I’ve spent at any company, and by far the most rewarding. Being part of the company’s growth—from zero orbital spacecraft to where we are now, with many in orbit and dozens more in preparation for launch—has been incredible. 

Loft’s space infrastructure vision is what initially attracted me, and the quality of the team is why I never want to leave. I have been around the industry enough to know how rare it is to have a group of people that cares so deeply about their craft and the mission. 

Change and challenge are the two constants of my time at Loft. I started working on the Cockpit team, writing software to control our spacecraft. I was able to grow into team leadership, and now group leadership for our Software Integration and Infrastructure teams.

A year and a half ago, I had the privilege of moving from our San Francisco office to our Toulouse office, where I get to be part of a truly unique and incredible international team.

If you’re interested in joining our Software or Integration Team, or if you want to take a look at other open roles, please visit our hiring page. 

The post Get to Know Our Software & Integration Teams appeared first on Loft Orbital.

In January 2017, we started Loft to make it simple for organizations to deploy and operate missions in space. Exactly 8 years later, we are thrilled to announce that the mission continues with our $170M Series C, led by Tikehau Capital with Axial Partners as a co-lead, and joined by Bpifrance, Foundation Capital, Temasek, and Uncork Capital.

Within the company, we talk about 2025 as the year we reach fleet scale. With our current manifest alone, we will soon operate one of the largest heterogenous satellite fleets in Low Earth Orbit. We have operations on three continents that enable us to serve a truly global customer base. This round gives us the fuel to meet this challenge and build a durable, trusted commercial space company.

Where we started

Today, commercial space is red hot. Demand for commercial space solutions is driven by a few megatrends:

• the need to understand the Earth’s changing climate
• national need for security and sovereignty across all governments
• the world’s insatiable demand for connectivity and data

While SpaceX has mostly solved the launch side of the industry, the satellite side is still plagued by schedule problems. In the space supply chain, vendor schedules are typically more suggestion than commitment. As satellites are typically designed as custom one-offs, it takes years to design, build, test, and launch a satellite mission.

We started Loft to flip this script.

We saw that most customers in the space industry valued getting to space quickly over having every single one of their mission requirements met. These customers don’t need an exquisite point design for a satellite. They need space infrastructure that can fly any mission type rapidly and reliably.

Loft has spent the past 8 years developing and productizing the building blocks of this Infrastructure, anchored around:

1. Internal Developments

• Hub, a modular and universal payload adapter
• Cockpit, flexible mission operations software for hybrid satellite fleet and constellations at scale.

2. A stable of standard mission elements where we work with established providers, including satellite buses in different classes, ground stations across the world, providers of real-time data relay in GEO, and various cloud providers.

We’ve also honed the internal tooling, test infrastructure, and process expertise that is essential to delivering a satellite to space.

As an infrastructure company, we like to draw parallels between Loft and the cloud computing industry.

The miracle of the cloud is that a company can run its entire software stack without any insight into the cloud’s underlying infrastructure (data center, servers, networking). As the cloud enables developers to focus on applications not servers, Loft enables our customers to focus on their mission, not the satellite program.

Our core products, the Hub and Cockpit, are hardware and software abstractions that de-couple the customer’s payload – the mission – from the underlying satellite. This means that Loft does not need to design a satellite for a customer’s mission, we simply configure our satellite platform for whatever the customer needs.

Productization means that Loft’s satellites are not 100% optimized for each customer’s mission. While this may violate traditional aerospace orthodoxy, we embrace it. It means that we are prioritizing speed to orbit, schedule predictability, simplicity, and reliability through heritage rather than absolute performance.

Where we’ve been

Back in 2021, we raised a $130M Series B. Since then the Loft team has flat out executed, which has enabled us to raise an incredible Series C. We have:

• Sold out over 30 satellites, representing $500M in lifetime bookings with customers such as NASA, Microsoft, BAE Systems, the US Space Force, The French Space Agency (CNES), the European Space Agency, EarthDaily, Helsing, Eutelsat and many more
• Deployed tens of missions across 5 satellites launched
• Continued to double revenue over multiple years
• Established Loft Federal, which is launching its first satellites for the Space Development Agency in 2025 and is fully set up to perform on classified programs
  Established a $100M+ Joint Venture in the UAE with Marlan Space, where we are currently building out a 50,000 sq foot facility. We are under contract to provide satellites to the JV and plan to begin launches of JV-built satellites in 2026
• Launched YAM-6, the world’s first satellite dedicated to running AI in space
• Opened our flagship Integration and Test Center in Golden, CO, where we now have over tens of satellites “on the shelf”, ready well in advance of when the customer payloads are delivered
• Continued to build an incredible team across our offices in SF, Golden, Toulouse, and Abu Dhabi with a commitment to a high bar of people who are smart, kind, and care deeply

We achieved over $500M of bookings on only $160M of capital raised prior to this Series C. In an industry known for its capital intensity, we are extra proud of our capital efficiency.

Where we’re going

At Loft we think of our vision in two horizons. Horizon 1 is the here and now, the core of our business today. Horizon 2 is our future opportunity to transform the space industry.

Horizon 1: Simple, rapid, and reliable deployments of our customers’ physical missions.

This is our primary business today, and will continue to be going forward.

Today, we are at an inflection point, where we are scaling from launching a handful of satellites per year to 10+. Our 2025 manifest features multiple constellations including EarthDaily and the Space Development Agency, as well as several of our hallmark rideshare programs.

Loft’s primary focus in 2025 is to launch this manifest and successfully deploy our customers’ missions.

Beyond 2025, we will continue to be even more of a go-to space infrastructure provider for customers who want fast, simple, and reliable missions.

Horizon 2: Providing real-time insights directly from space

In Horizon 1 we are taking on a large, existing market with a fresh value proposition. In Horizon 2 we are building a new market.

Today, satellites are used in slow motion. A human tasks a satellite, data is collected, and that data is downlinked and routed back to the customer. Another human uses that data to make a decision or conduct some analysis.

Very few satellites are used to detect and monitor events in real-time. We believe there is massive, untapped potential in utilizing satellites for tactical purposes. To do so, our satellites have to become smarter and more rapidly accessible.

In Horizon 2, we are launching satellites with not only high-value sensors but also with compute (GPUs, CPUs, and FPGAs) and always-on connectivity via inter-satellite link. We have developed the framework that supports the execution of customer-provided AI apps, aka Virtual Missions, onboard Loft satellites.

While lots of companies are talking about running AI in space, very few are actually doing it. Loft is one of those few. Today, we are running virtual missions on YAM-6 every day for partners and customers such as Helsing, Microsoft, Agenium, NTT, and many others.

With this round of funding, we will increase our focus on Horizon 2 by growing our ecosystem of AI application partners and making it seamless and eventually self-serve for anyone to deploy and run AI apps on Loft’s infrastructure.

Some Thanks

First off, to our employees: building this company with you all has been the honor of our lives. Our culture has been an 8 year experiment in combining relentlessness and kindness, aerospace and software, and many nationalities across offices on three continents. Despite the long hard days in the trenches – which at a space company is basically every day – we have built a real community at Loft where we push each other to do better while also having each other’s backs.

To the incredible new investors in this round: Tikehau Capital, Axial Partners, Temasek, Supernova, Tribeca Venture Partners, Starburst VC, Arkenstone Partners, and GSBackers.

To our loyal existing investors, many of who have invested across multiple rounds: Uncork Capital, Foundation Capital, Bpifrance, Ubiquity VC, Heroic VC, Timber Grove Ventures, Modern Venture Partners, Swell VC, CEAS, Woori Ventures, and Gore Creek.

A very deep heartfelt special thanks to a few key relationships forged over the years that have shaped the company’s trajectory through many trying times: Steve Vassallo (Foundation Capital), Jeff Clavier (Uncork Capital), Adrien Mueller (Bpifrance), and Sunil Nagaraj (Ubiquity VC). A special thanks to Dan Fleischmann and Jeff Safferman at Timber Grove Ventures for your unyielding support since Day 1.

And finally, to our customers: we cherish the trust and faith you have placed in Loft. We will continue to go above and beyond for you, make space simpler for you, and wear your shoes.

Building space infrastructure is our life’s work. We’re in it for the long haul. Now, back to work!

– Pierre-Damien and Alex

The post Announcing Loft’s $170M Series C appeared first on Loft Orbital.

‘Houston, we have a problem’

Over the past few years, we’ve launched and operated satellites at a speed previously unseen in the space industry.

Since 2017, we’ve accelerated our integration and launch process from a four-year timeline to the ability to launch a full constellation in 2025. We’ve advanced our onboard stack to a Linux-based system with Kubernetes clusters in orbit and developed a microservice-driven Mission Control System (MCS) managing multiple satellites and ground stations.

Here’s the catch: as our capabilities grow, so does our data volume. Traditional telemetry and telecommand (TM/TC) systems are reliable but limited. Similar to the serial link of your server, when a problem arises these systems can serve as a safety net however, they can’t handle large-scale tasks like updating firmware or transferring container images across a fleet. A better network is no longer just a nice to have—it’s essential.

We successfully built a proven onboard IPvX network stack and launched a flight test platform dedicated to R&D. Combined with running Kubernetes clusters, this lays the foundation for scalable communication and innovation, making it the perfect candidate for a new network infrastructure.

We’re breaking the cloud border

To address these issues head-on, we embraced modern Software-Defined Networking (SDN) principles, similar to those employed in virtual private clouds1.

A flexible, hardware-agnostic SDN is key to building a scalable, cost-effective solution. Once the groundwork is established, we extend these elements back to the satellites to create a global mesh network.

These core advancements combined with our Virtual Mission offerings make Virtual Private Space as straightforward as its cloud counterparts.

Introducing SpaceVPN

SpaceVPN is our first step toward a global mesh network. It focuses on ground systems while leveraging our existing on-board capabilities. Our goal is to give customers direct payload access and provide our spacecraft with internet connectivity.

It works by routing Layer 3 (IP) packets from the spacecraft, over radio to our Mission Control System, and then to the end user. It may sound simple, but the execution has presented some interesting challenges.

It’s all about data

In SDN, everything revolves around control- and data planes.

Control planes manage routing, firewall rules, and network behavior. Think of it as the railway signal system, where data planes move data, like the train itself focusing on speed and throughput, each with its unique priorities. The control plane prioritizes reliability over speed whereas a data plane focuses on performance and volume. By decoupling them, we enhance security, efficiency, and scalability.

For SpaceVPN, the control plane combines new tech (gRPC streams, Kubernetes) with established methods (Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) routing, iptables2). At Loft, we’re testing the data plane with QUIC, a cutting-edge protocol ideal for high-latency environments like space.

Our first success involving ground AI

Ever wondered what happens when you mix space technology with cat memes? Well, we decided to find out. We decided to beam a cat picture from space to ChatGPT to demonstrate our new technology capabilities.

Why a cat pic? Our flight software lead Brandon snuck a picture of his cat Nixie onto our satellite before launch. Since we were itching to test our space-to-ground internet connection through our onboard Kubernetes cluster, we thought, “What better way than with a cat pic?” We created a quick Python app using OpenAI’s SDK and asked ChatGPT, “Hey, what do you see?”

The response? Spot on:

“The picture shows a gray cat lying on its back on grass. The cat is in a playful or relaxed pose, enjoying the sunlight. The grass is vibrantly green and well-lit.”

While it may seem simple, this test pushed our tech stack to the limit:

• Virtual Space Engine (Loft’s app runtime environment, over Kubernetes)
• Flight Software SDK (Loft’s flight software)
• Networking across Hub Nodes and Hub Radio (Loft’s onboard compute and networking infrastructure)
• Cockpit (Loft’s Mission Management and Control System)
• SpaceVPN

Who knows, we may just be the first humans to use AI to analyze a cat picture from space.

QUIC Words About Network Protocols

Originally developed by Google, QUIC is the backbone of HTTP/3. Designed to solve issues like head-of-line blocking in HTTP/2. QUIC provides our satellite networks with:

• Resilience: Smooth performance even with packet loss.
• Performance: Low latency and faster connection setups, a crucial component for mobile or intermittent networks.
• Security: QUIC integrates TLS encryption for built-in security, essential for privacy-critical applications like SpaceVPN. Challenges like UDP traffic throttling and resource demand mean deploying it strategically with contingency plans in place.

So, what’s next?

In the short term, we’re focused on testing, refining, and operationalizing SpaceVPN to ensure its robustness and efficiency. Mid-term efforts will shift toward migrating network-intensive tasks to Layer 3, unlocking new levels of performance and scalability. Long term, our sights are set on building a global meshed network layer to redefine connectivity in space.

Together, these steps pave the way for a secure, scalable, and efficient network. With innovations like QUIC, SpaceVPN is shaping a future where space infrastructure will be as reliable and accessible as today’s cloud.

If you’re interested in joining our team, visit our hiring page.

*Links:

1. Virtual private clouds: VPC networks | Google Cloud, Private Cloud – Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) – AWS, Azure Virtual Network – Virtual Private Cloud | Microsoft Azure or services like Tailscale and Twingate.
2. What is BGP? – BGP Routing Explained – AWS

The post CatGPT: Our First Step Toward a Global Mesh Network appeared first on Loft Orbital.

Unlocking new potential for hyperspectral imagery: The Four Leaf Clover constellation

Under this agreement, Loft will integrate and operate FLC hyperspectral sensors onboard upcoming Yet Another Mission (YAM) satellites, beginning in 2026. The hyperspectral sensors will image hundreds of bands in the visible and shortwave infrared spectrum, and are designed to support a broad range of applications such as identification of critical minerals, detection of methane leaks, and precision monitoring for industries such as mining, agriculture, oil and gas, and more. Esper selected Loft as its space infrastructure provider to integrate, launch and operate hyperspectral missions.

“Esper is pushing the boundaries of hyperspectral remote sensing and redefining what can be done at scale with our next-generation hyperspectral satellite missions,” said Shoaib Iqbal. “With Loft’s powerful satellite infrastructure, we’re supporting our customers’ mission critical use cases across mining, agriculture, climate, oil and gas”.

“Esper’s FLC constellation is an ideal fit for Loft’s infrastructure”, said Mitchell Scher, Loft’s Senior Director of Business Development. “We want to let Esper focus on developing a high quality instrument and building new applications using their data, rather than becoming a space company to become a data and analytics company.”

Critical mineral discovery and sustainable mining, climate and national security applications from space

Esper’s FLC constellation is especially well suited to support the sustainable mining industry, which has seen a boom in global demand for critical minerals like lithium and copper in recent years. Esper aims to enable companies to “unlock” these resources by providing insights to guide efficient mineral deposit identification and extraction while minimizing ecological impact. These mineral discoveries are instrumental in supporting renewable energy technologies that drive a fossil-fuel-free future.

Esper’s satellite data also addresses a range of climate-related applications, including methane emissions monitoring, oil spill detection, tailings monitoring, tracking production mining and ore grade tracking.

Esper’s hyperspectral sensing technology focused on the infrared spectrum can detect and track objects of interest, from detecting camouflage and recently earthed minefields to tracking the movement of allied and adversarial military assets. ensuring national security of nation-states.

A new paradigm in space-based sensing

With the launch of their mission on Loft’s infrastructure in 2026, Esper’s hyperspectral imaging technology is set to bring actionable insights to customers who rely on precise data. Esper is actively engaging customers in industries that include mining, oil and gas, agriculture, and national security, with the goal of delivering satellite-based data that drives informed, impactful decisions.

Together, Esper and Loft are creating a new paradigm in space-based sensing, with a focus on a sustainable, climate-resilient future.

The post Esper and Loft team up to pioneer resource monitoring with next-generation hyperspectral imagery appeared first on Loft Orbital.