California startup AnySignal has come out of stealth mode with $5 million in funding for its multifunctional space radio platform. The company hopes to beat competitors such as L3Harris Technologies
AnySignal’s product operates across multiple frequency bands and includes ground equipment for testing hardware, modems that can be upgraded to different wavelengths, licensing support, and software that allows interoperability with various onboard systems, according to the company’s COO and co-founder Jeffrey Osborne.
The Los Angeles-based startup hopes its focus on providing comprehensive end-user products will give it an edge over major radio vendors such as L3Harris Technologies, an aerospace and defense giant that earned more than $22 billion last year.
An L3Harris spokesman said there are currently more than 180 AppSTAR radio platforms in orbit, and the company provides ground segments for many of them.
However, Osborne said that while traditional leaders provide comprehensive services, AnySignal strives to optimize performance and reduce costs by tightly integrating its offering with customer needs.
California-based startup AnySignal is entering the space market with unique space radio technology.
Think SpaceX vs. ULA. The first company is vertically integrated and has established itself, while the second is much more fragmented, and this has led to differences in differentiation and market leadership
John Mulsbury, chief executive of AnySignal, is a former SpaceX engineer who helped manage the development of the rocket signal processing system, the Starshield military product line, the Starlink space communications network, and the Dragon 2 capsule. Osborne, who is also a founding member of Canadian small satellite operator Kepler Communications, reported that the first launches of products from AnySignal can be expected as early as November on board the SpaceX Transporter 9 mission.
He added that their radio is also scalable to subsequent Transporter missions and will be used on hypersonic vehicles next year as part of test programs. The AnySignal data communications platform has a dual-antenna GPS receiver and is compatible with Ultra High Frequency (UHF), S-band, L-band, and X-band. Frequencies in these bands are used for a variety of space applications, from communications with Earth to communications between two spacecraft in orbit. The radio is not compatible with the Ka-band and Ku-band broadband spectrum.
Osborne said AnySignal already generates revenue from commercial and government customers. He also said the company plans to expand its team of eight employees to 15 by the end of this year, and to 30 by the summer of 2024. The primary focus of the expansion will be the development of the engineering and sales team to increase manufacturing and testing capacity, meet DoD security contracting requirements, and prepare for the development of additional products.
