September 29, 2019 by Luke James
Fleet Space Technologies and Astrocast of Australia and Sweden respectively have raised a total of $16.5 million from funding rounds.
Fleet Space Technologies have raised $7.3 million from global venture funds, including Momenta Ventures and Horizon Ventures, while Astrocast managed to raise $9.3 million. The funding raised by Fleet Space Technologies also included money from the Kennard family.
This funding has been raised to further efforts to meet demands for IoT satellite networks across key industries, such as logistics and resources.
Founded in 2015, Fleet Space Technologies (FST) is an Australian startup focusing on the next generation of connectivity. The company's goal is to ‘Connect Everything’ by using cutting-edge communications and space technologies.
Based in Adelaide, South Australia, the company consists of experts in remote connectivity systems, and in fact, it has been the connectivity challenges present in Australia that have driven the company to create new connectivity technologies.
Founded in 2014, Astrocast SA, in partnership with the European Space Agency, Airbus, and Thuraya, is developing an advanced nanosatellite network for the IoT. Together, Astrocast and Airbus have developed a low-cost application-specific integrated circuit and module that provides the most power-efficient satellite modem for IoT applications.
Astrocast's constellation will consist of 64 CubeSat satellites in low earth orbit (LEO) to provide low-latency global coverage.
Astrocast has already launched 4 of its 64 nanosatellites aboard SpaceX, Rocket Lab, and the Indian Space Research Organisation. These satellites use a long-range LoraWAN hub to process data from sensors using edge computing, reducing data transmission needs. The company aims to establish “a global constellation of nanosatellites at a fraction of the cost of traditional satellitesâ€. The company plans to launch its next series of satellites in 2020.
The development and launch of future satellites—satellites that the company has admitted may be "slightly larger" than the 1.5U and 3U CubeSats that were launched last year—will bolster IoT connectivity by facilitating the tracking of assets across thousands of kilometres, remote management of heavy industrial equipment at mine sites, and the monitoring of
major pipelines and utilities. This is just a mere indication of the potential that an LEO IoT satellite network could realise.
With its satellites, Astrocast is the first to deliver a complete solution that includes:
100% global coverage, including remote areas
Two-way communications
256-bit encryption and multi-level security
The lowest latency LEO network
L-Band and S-Band frequencies
Remote monitoring from a web application
As Fabien Jordan, CEO of Astrocast, puts it:“The growth of IoT devices for commercial purposes is outpacing anything the analysts predicted. And in many cases, these devices are performing tasks that are impacting the lives of entire populations. Astrocast is helping make world-changing new IoT applications possible.â€
