Colorado Springs, Colorado, Feb. 22, 2024 — The Catalyst Accelerator is excited to announce the selection of seven outstanding small businesses with innovative, complementary tech solutions. These companies will come together from across the globe to participate in the Accelerator’s 13th cohort focused on Space Domain Awareness.
The Catalyst Accelerator, powered by the Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate (AFRL/RV), exists to empower nontraditional technology companies to accelerate their involvement in the national defense ecosystem by providing connections, mentorship, and business development in a collaborative setting for a lasting national impact. Space Domain Awareness is the ability to rapidly detect, track, characterize, and attribute threats to our nation’s space assets, and plays a pivotal role in national security. The United States Space Force recognizes the urgency of protecting space mission sensors and systems and sought to leverage commercial software capabilities to enhance, supplement, support, and refine existing Space Domain Awareness capabilities.
The Space Domain Awareness cohort (#CASDA2) is the first Accelerator in partnership with The Space Domain Awareness Tools, Applications & Processing Lab (SDA TAP Lab). Maj Sean Allen, Chief of the SDA TAP Lab, explained, “The TAP Lab is partnered with Catalyst Campus to feed companies directly from the Catalyst Accelerator into the lab. They mature the business model, and the lab helps accelerate the product. This means companies are better positioned to build what the NSDC and Delta 2 need, and are more likely to make sales. Last week, I had the privilege of reviewing pitches for the Catalyst Accelerator. It was amazing to see the expertise of these startups. I learned a lot and am confident our partnership will ultimately improve the quality of commercial space battle management software.”
The #CASDA2 cohort will meet two weeks per month beginning March 19th and ending June 14th. Each company will collaborate with subject matter experts, work with government and commercial Navigators, and complete an intensive customer discovery process. The cohort will culminate in a Demo Day on June 13th where they will pitch their technology to Government and Industry partners as well as investors assessing the potential of cohort company technologies. After the conclusion of the program, the companies will be positioned well to participate in the SDA TAP Lab’s 4th Project Apollo cohort if they choose to do so.
The Catalyst Accelerator team, with technical advisement from Government, Industry, and Academia, underwent a rigorous selection process in order to carefully choose the companies for the #CASDA2 cohort. The following startups were chosen based on their demonstrated potential and innovative capability solutions:
Active Vigilance (Cheyenne, Wyoming) At Active Vigilance, we are spearheading the deployment of onboard artificial intelligence and machine learning for aerospace applications. Our vision is a safer world where space assets survive through events no one could have predicted, limiting the effects of hostile action, and maintaining deterrence. Active Vigilance provides the most efficient and trustworthy machine learning, enabling human-on-the loop control of autonomous space assets. Active Vigilance has developed machine learning which needs minimal training data and collaborates with human oversight to ensure mission goals are met. With flexible hardware implementations including in space and on the ground, Active Vigilance offers a new resilience for in-space and other high-value, complex assets.
Astra Ultra (Littleton, Colorado) Astra Ultra is revolutionizing space domain awareness with our cutting-edge artificial intelligence technology. Our AI systems provide unparalleled accuracy in tracking and predicting orbital patterns, ensuring enhanced safety and strategic planning for satellite operations. By integrating advanced machine learning algorithms, Astra Ultra offers real-time data analysis and decision-making capabilities, ensuring continued mission capability and success. Our commitment to innovation positions Astra Ultra as a pivotal player in shaping the future of space domain awareness.
The Exclosure (San Francisco, California) Exclosure stands at the forefront of space situational awareness, revolutionizing the field with our global network of AI/ML-enhanced observatories. Compact yet powerful, our observatories deliver unprecedented revisit rates for analyzing orbital and atmospheric objects. We blend cutting-edge artificial intelligence with advanced data processing to offer real-time insights, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in space observation and security. Exclosure seeks to provide not just space domain awareness, but space domain empowerment.
iMETALX Inc. (Sausalito, California) iMETALX is at the forefront of space technology, offering cutting-edge observation and surveillance services. Utilizing sophisticated sensors and algorithms, the company excels in identifying, tracking, and analyzing satellites and debris across low earth orbit and beyond. Essential for maintaining space situational awareness, iMETALX’s services safeguard the functionality and safety of space assets through comprehensive imagery and data, while also facilitating effective operations for in-space services.
Orbital Services Corporation LLC (OSCorp) (Colorado Springs, Colorado) OSCorp is an in-space services company at the vanguard of cementing U.S. space supremacy to safeguard the space domain and build a thriving in-space economy. We develop cutting-edge technologies at the nexus of GN&C, AI/ML, LiDAR sensors, space robotics, and lasercom terminals–the building blocks that would enable safe and robust ADR involving RPOC of uncooperative spacecraft.
https://www.orbitalservicescorporation.com
Quasar Satellite Technologies (Sydney, Australia) Quasar has developed a state-of-the-art, fully digital multibeam phased array antenna, capable of simultaneously delivering SDA & SATCOM from a single aperture, marking a revolutionary advancement in All-Sky visibility.
TRL 11 Inc. (Irvine, California) TRL11 is advancing the development and utilization of full motion video for spacecraft operations and space security. The company is building cameras and recording systems emphasizing real-time and low power video feeds from space. Central to TRL11’s innovative approach is its proprietary AI/ML video processing software which employs a novel compression technique and downlinks only the valuable content in a recording to streamline insights for ground operators while minimizing bandwidth costs.
The Catalyst Accelerator is proud to play a pivotal role in driving technological advancements and fostering innovation in the space sector. By bringing together talented startups and industry leaders, the Accelerator aims to fast-track the development and deployment of technologies that will shape the future of the space industry.
About Catalyst Accelerator
The Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate and United States Space Force’s Catalyst Accelerator is a NewSpace-focused defense and national security industry accelerator, headquartered on the Catalyst Campus for Technology and Innovation (CCTI) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. CCTI is a collaborative ecosystem where industry, small business, entrepreneurs, startups, government, academia, and investors intersect with Colorado’s aerospace and defense industry to create community, spark innovation, and stimulate business growth. The Catalyst Accelerator is a collaborative program hosted by Catalyst Campus for Technology and Innovation (CCTI, a Colorado 501(c)3) in partnership with the United States Space Force, and the Air Force Research Laboratory to provide a robust, mentor-driven curriculum for accelerator teams.
