ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER PATENT ๐ฅ
AST SpaceMobile has just been granted a new patent and itโs a big one for scaling a space based cellular network.
The patent outlines how devices can seamlessly transition between overlapping satellite beams and gateways without dropping connectivity.
Key points
โข Directly addresses one of the hardest technical challenges for a global NTN network - uninterrupted mobility between moving satellites
โข Describes overlapping cell architecture and dynamic switching between communication ports/beams in real time
โข Improves reliability, latency management and user experience as satellites move across coverage zones
โข Shows that AST is building a terrestrial grade cellular experience from space, not just intermittent satellite messaging like competitors
The market is sleeping on how big of a technical moat AST is building ๐ฅ
$ASTS
$ASTS: My updated summary of @AST_SpaceMobile post-Q1 2026 update ๐
PROVEN TECHNOLOGY
+ Broadband D2D technology, protected by approximately 3,900 patents and patent-pending claims
+ Demonstrated peak data rate of 98.9 Mbps over international waters
+ Proven spectral efficiency of at least 3 bits/Hz, with Block 2 BlueBird satellites expected to achieve ~200 Mbps downlink per beam
+ Proven seamless satellite-to-satellite handover
+ Actively working on ~10 distinct non-communications use cases, each in various stages of maturity and each having potential to grow into government contracts worth "hundreds of millions" of annual revenue each
+ Actively demonstrating low band radar applications to the US government, supporting the needs of Golden Dome
PARTNERSHIPS
+ Multiple 5 to 10 year commercial definitive agreements and/or equity investments with major key MNOs around the world: AT&T, FirstNet, Verizon, Vodafone, STC Group, Bell, and Telus
+ Nearly 60 memorandums of understanding and/or agreements with global MNOs that are on a path to commercial definitive agreements
+ European joint venture with Vodafone: Satellite Connect Europe, which has partnerships with Orange, Telefonica, Axian Telecom, VodafoneThree UK, Vodafone Ireland, Romania, and Ukraine, CK Hutchison Group, Sunrise, and Taiwan Mobile
+ Prime Contractor to the US government/military
+ Teaming agreement with Fairwinds for communications applications for the US government/military
REGULATORY/SPECTRUM
+ Full FCC commercial approval for 248 BlueBird satellites, which includes access to a total of up to 53x53 MHz low band MNO spectrum in the US
+ 1,150 MHz low and mid-band tunable MNO spectrum globally
+ 80 year access to Ligado's 45 MHz of MSS L-band in North America
+ Pending requests with the FCC for up to 45 MHz of MSS S-band internationally
CONTRACTS/REVENUE BACKLOG
+ Over $1.2B of contracted commercial revenue backlog
+ Rapidly growing government revenue backlog with over 10 government contracts
+ Anticipates 150M to 200M revenue in 2026 with upside potential
+ Anticipates ~1B revenue in 2027 with upside potential
MANUFACTURING AND LAUNCH
+ 6 commercial BlueBird satellites in orbit
+ Next 3 BlueBirds (BB8-10) scheduled to launch in mid-June on a SpaceX Falcon 9 vehicle
+ Guiding for approximately 45 BlueBirds in orbit by year-end
+ Multi launch contracts with SpaceX, Blue Origin, and an undisclosed medium/heavy lift vehicle on standby (in advanced discussions with ULA for Vulcan?)
+ Up to BB33 in advanced stages of assembly, with microns completed to BB33
+ Phased arrays completed to BB28
+ Manufacturing pace supports a launch cadence of every 1 to 2 months on average
+ Over 500,000 sqft of manufacturing at full production
+ Investments completed to enable a production capacity of 6 satellites per month with room to grow to 10 or 12 per month via automation and facility expansions
+ Dedicated micron production facility in Texas is now fully operational, with capacity to support over 10 satellitesโ worth of microns per month
+ Over 2,000 global workforce
CASH/LIQUIDITY
+ Robust ~3.5B cash/liquidity on current balance sheet, fully funded for ~100 BlueBird satellites
+ Reiterated no plans for more convertible notes in 2026
$ASTS: ๐จStandard unmodified phones with no new hardware or modifications DO NOT support a straight 40 MHz channel block of low band.
Therefore, @AST_SpaceMobile achieved this massively impressive 98.9 Mbps with undisclosed technology/software.
For example: MIMO or carrier aggregation
This demonstrates that AST is already rapidly improving their spectral efficiency FAR BEYOND the status quo of ~3 bits/Hz which they demonstrated with BlueWalker 3.
For comparison, Starlink Mobile is currently stuck at ~0.8 bits/Hz according to various user tests. Starlink appears to be hoping to hit ~150 Mbps by achieving ~3 bits/Hz with 50 MHz EchoStar spectrum in 2027/2028 with their next-gen satellites to be launched with Starship and only supported with new phones sold with compatible chipsets in 2027 and later.
Meanwhile, AST is already there with legacy smartphones and breaking their own technological limits. โ๏ธ
$ASTS was granted SCS in US & granted MSS globally.
While operating MSS frequencies over land requires country by country authorization, operating over international waters does not.
424 MHz of prime lowband spectrum over international waters granted.
https://t.co/1tzM51lA9l
๐พ
Ghostty is leaving GitHub. I'm GitHub user 1299, joined Feb 2008. I've visited GitHub almost every single day for over 18 years. It's never been a question for me where I'd put my projects: always GitHub. I'm super sad to say this, but its time to go. https://t.co/DQDemHdytV
The first stage was nominal, and the booster came back beautifully. We separated and turned on as expected, but the launch vehicle second stage did not place BlueBird 7 on its intended orbit. We are on Satellite 32 and plan to ship BB8 to 10 in approximately 30 days and continue to target ~ 45 satellites in orbit this year.
$ASTS The FCC just did what the market hasnโt priced yetโฆ
Regulatory clarity โ
Spectrum protection โ
Permanent authority to deploy โ
This isnโt just approval, itโs the U.S. government backing Direct to Device as critical infrastructure.
Now connect the dots:
Export-driven global rollout + national priority = financing pathways (EXIM ๐)
$ASTS isnโt fighting for a seatโฆ
Itโs being positioned as the standard!
The runway just got a lot bigger! ๐บ๐ธ๐๐ฐ๏ธ๐ฅ๐ฐ
FCC Grants AST SpaceMobile Commercial Authority to Deliver Direct-to-Device Cellular Broadband from Space Advancing Nationwide, Resilient Cellular Broadband Connectivity in the United States
https://t.co/z5MFyMrnTs
THIS IS THE BIG ONE
I've been working on this report for a while. Like, it took A LOT of work. But here it is. Phew
๐๐๐๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐ซ๐๐๐ญ-๐ญ๐จ-๐๐๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ (๐๐๐) ๐๐๐ซ๐ค๐๐ญ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐๐๐: ๐๐๐๐
MORE: https://t.co/PajgLycesP
During March 2026, 0.46% of Speedtestยฎ users in the U.S. recorded a connection to a D2D satellite. In Chile, that figure was 1.26% (the highest). In Canada, it was 0.70%. In Japan, it was 0.11% (the lowest).
MORE: https://t.co/PajgLycesP
$ASTS: New to the AST SpaceMobile story? Emma Jorna does a great job summarizing the key technologies that enable AST to deliver broadband connectivity to unmodified mobile phones and devices.
1/ today we're releasing muse spark, the first model from MSL. nine months ago we rebuilt our ai stack from scratch. new infrastructure, new architecture, new data pipelines. muse spark is the result of that work, and now it powers meta ai. ๐งต