Space42 and Viasat Commit Up to $1 Billion to Equatys Satellite Platform

Space42 and Viasat signed a binding agreement on September 14, 2026, at World Space Business Week in Paris to form Equatys and commit up to $1 billion in founders' equity. Space42 Managing Director Karim Michel Sabbagh said, "With the signing of this agreement, Equatys takes off." Each company will initially contribute $400 million; Space42 is expected to provide another $200 million in a future funding round open to third-party investors. Viasat Chairman and CEO Mark Dankberg said the venture would create a new infrastructure category for global direct-to-device and advanced mobile satellite connectivity, supported by spectrum assets and a shared infrastructure model. Direct-to-device technology connects ordinary devices straight to satellites under 3GPP non-terrestrial network standards. Viasat is expected to serve as prime technology contractor. The design can grow to as many as 2,800 satellites across 60 orbital planes and three altitude layers. The companies say they hold commercial agreements with more than 400 mobile operators worldwide and access to more than 100 MHz of coordinated mobile satellite services spectrum, the radio bands reserved for satellite links. Space42 holds coordinated L-band rights across more than 160 markets; Viasat holds L-band rights globally and S-band rights in Europe. They project the direct-to-device market will reach $30 billion to $70 billion by 2040.