SmartSat Cooperative Research Centre (SmartSat) is backing innovative research to develop end-to-end Australian capabilities in In-orbit Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM), in a project underwritten by a total investment of $ 2.3 million. SmartSat's research partner, the University of Sydney, will be leading the new project, which will develop robotic satellite technologies to reliably connect with other satellites to perform in-orbit repairs and maintenance. NSW-based industry partners Abyss Solutions, ANT61, Space Machines Company, Sperospace, and Spiral Blue will also support the research project.

Pale Blue Inc. has received a grant from Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) under the Small and Business Innovation Research 3 (SBIR-3) program to develop and demonstrate key technology for space debris mitigation. The grant is worth up to USD 27 million (JPY 4 billion) and will enable the development and demonstration of a miniaturized water-based ion thruster and a water-based hall-effect thruster by fiscal 2027.

Kuva Space has announced its expansion to the United States, establishing Kuva Space US in Fairfax, Virginia. As a result, Jerry Welsh, the former CEO of ICEYE US, has joined Kuva Space as a board member and will lead the company’s expansion efforts to become a leading provider of hyperspectral insights to the U.S. Government (USG).

OQ Technology, a global satellite narrowband IoT connectivity operator, has signed a contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) for a feasibility study of Direct-to-Cell connectivity. The Luxembourg Government, under the LuxImpulse program, is funding the contract. The  LuxImpulse aims to foster Luxembourg and European space initiatives through the national space program. 

The Global Satellite Operators Association (GSOA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) have announced the signing of a Memorandum of Intent (MOI). The MOI, signed by Isabelle Mauro, Director General at GSOA, and Francisco-Javier Benedicto Ruiz, Acting Director of Connectivity & Secure Communications at ESA, solidifies the commitment of both organizations to work closely together in the pursuit of their shared goals in this area. 

Synthetaic has raised $15 million in Series B funding from new and existing investors, accelerating the Company's commercialization of RAIC, a dual-use model-independent classification and detection platform for image data. Lupa Systems and TitletownTech both co-led the round, with participation from IBM Ventures and Booz Allen Hamilton.

ThrustMe has announced a transformative off-the-shelf contract with the French Centre National d'Études Spatiales (CNES). This purchase agreement is a testimony to the rapidly changing aerospace sector, where the lines between the legacy and new space are blurring. Long-standing actors such as CNES can benefit from complete and reliable industrial and standardized products for their space missions to accelerate development times and reduce costs.

LeoLabs has announced its selection to participate in the U.S. Space Systems Command's Space Domain Awareness (SDA) Tools Applications and Processing (TAP) Lab Apollo Accelerator. This program enables LeoLabs to demonstrate its AI-powered solutions for Combat ID and Space Battle Management.

Arianegroup's special ship "Canopée" has picked up the upper stage for the next generation of the European launch system, Ariane-6, from Bremen this week and is bringing it to Kourou in French Guiana. Ariane-6's launch is planned for the summer of 2024.  

Lynk Global, Inc., a satellite-direct-to-standard-phone (“sat2phone”) telecoms provider, and Slam Corp., a special purpose acquisition company (“Slam”), have announced entering into a definitive business combination agreement, under which Slam will combine with Lynk. Upon completion, the combined company will operate as Lynk Global Holdings, Inc., and its common stock will publicly list on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “LYNK”.