Loft Orbital and Marlan Space have announced a $1bn programme to grow their AI-equipped satellite constellation from 10 satellites to 50, with Mistral supplying the AI models on board. The two companies set out the plan in a press release on 9 September. They said French President Emmanuel Macron announced it at the International Space Summit in Paris.
Marlan Space is a UAE-based investor and a subsidiary of IHC, the Abu Dhabi holding company. Bloomberg reported that IHC is publicly traded and overseen by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, a member of Abu Dhabi’s royal family. Loft Orbital builds and operates satellites for customers and has facilities in San Francisco, Golden in Colorado, and Toulouse. Daphné Leprince-Ringuet reported the deal for Sifted, and Kateryna Kadabashy covered it for Bloomberg.
What the $1bn pays for
Outlets described the money in different ways. The companies called it a $1bn programme. Sifted reported that Loft Orbital had signed a $1bn contract with Marlan Space. Bloomberg reported that a consortium led by the two companies plans to invest $1bn. Space Intel Report’s Peter B. de Selding reported that the $1bn comes from Royal Group of Abu Dhabi.
The constellation is called Altair, according to Bloomberg and Via Satellite. The first plan was for 10 satellites. Bloomberg reported that Orbitworks, the joint venture behind it, said last month it had a deal with the French space agency to provide services with the constellation.
