SPACE.HAUS — WEEKLY INTEL BRIEFING Thursday, May 14, 2026 ============================================================ Sources scanned: 50 Companies with news: 19 Funding activity: $5B+ Top story: Anduril raises $5B at $61B valuation Canonical: https://space.haus/briefings/2026-05-14.html Interactive: https://space.haus/briefing/2026-05-14 FUNDING ROUNDS & INVESTMENT ACTIVITY ------------------------------------ Anduril Industries — Costa Mesa, CA [FUNDING] • May 13 — Anduril Industries raised $5 billion at a $61 billion valuation, double its previous valuation, as defense-tech startups haul in record amounts of venture capital. (https://news.crunchbase.com/defense-tech/anduril-5b-valuation-vc-funding-record-data/) CONTRACTS, AWARDS & GOVERNMENT ACTIVITY --------------------------------------- NASA — Washington, DC [CONTRACT] • May 13 — House Appropriations Committee approved the FY2027 Commerce-Justice-Science bill with $24.4 billion for NASA, rejecting the Trump Administration's proposed $18.8 billion budget and deep cuts to the agency. (https://spacepolicyonline.com/news/house-appropriators-reject-deep-cuts-to-nasa-in-fy2027/) Rocket Lab — Long Beach, CA [CONTRACT] • May 14 — Rocket Lab won a $30 million contract from Anduril Industries for the HASTE hypersonic rocket launches program. (https://spacewatch.global/2026/05/rocket-lab-wins-anduril-industries-30-million-contract-for-haste-hypersonic-rocket-launches/) Gilat Satellite Networks — Petah Tikva, Israel [CONTRACT] • May 13 — Gilat Satellite Networks announced multiple large military contracts and expanded its footprint in India, strengthening its defense and government business. (https://satnews.com/2026/05/13/gilat-wins-big-military-contracts-expands-india-footprint/) MERGERS, ACQUISITIONS & PARTNERSHIPS ------------------------------------ SpinLaunch — Long Beach, CA [PARTNERSHIP] • May 13 — SpinLaunch announced a partnership with Aalyria Technologies to design and develop key infrastructure supporting its Meridian LEO communications constellation. Aalyria will provide network orchestration capabilities. (https://www.satellitetoday.com/technology/2026/05/13/spinlaunch-to-collaborate-with-aalyria-for-network-orchestration/) Neo Space Group — N/A [PARTNERSHIP] • May 13 — Neo Space Group selected ThinKom's ThinAir Ka2517 multi-orbit phased array antenna for installation across narrow-body aircraft fleets on multiple airlines. (https://www.satellitetoday.com/mobility/2026/05/13/neo-space-group-selects-thinkom-antenna-for-narrow-body-installations/) ispace — Tokyo, Japan [PARTNERSHIP] • May 14 — ispace signed a payload service agreement with the University of Leicester for a Lunar Raman Spectrometer mission, expanding its commercial lunar payload business. (https://spacewatch.global/2026/05/ispace-and-university-of-leicester-sign-payload-service-agreement-for-lunar-raman-spectrometer-mission/) Exobiosphere — N/A [PARTNERSHIP] • May 14 — Exobiosphere announced collaboration with Voyager to launch OHTS, an automated drug screening mission in orbit, advancing pharmaceutical research in microgravity. (https://spacewatch.global/2026/05/exobiosphere-is-collaborating-with-voyager-to-launch-ohts-an-automated-drug-screening-mission-in-orbit/) LAUNCH ACTIVITY & MISSION MILESTONES ------------------------------------ AST SpaceMobile — Midland, TX [LAUNCH] • May 14 — AST SpaceMobile announced it may launch some of its direct-to-device satellites on United Launch Alliance's Vulcan rocket, expanding launch options for its constellation deployment. (https://spacenews.com/ast-spacemobile-may-use-ulas-vulcan/) Landspace — Beijing, China [LAUNCH] • May 14 — Landspace successfully launched the improved Zhuque-2E rocket on a return-to-flight mission featuring numerous enhancements, while China's Long March 6A lofted new satellites for the Qianfan megaconstellation. (https://spacenews.com/landspace-launches-improved-zhuque-2e-long-march-6a-lofts-new-qianfan-satellite-group/) NASA (Artemis Program) — Washington, DC [LAUNCH] • May 13 — NASA revealed that the Space Launch System will launch on Artemis 3 without an upper stage as the agency defines revised mission plans, targeting late 2027 for the astronaut mission to Earth orbit. (https://spacenews.com/sls-to-launch-without-upper-stage-for-artemis-3/) SpaceX — Hawthorne, CA [LAUNCH, OPS UPDATE] • May 13 — SpaceX completed construction on a completely redesigned Starship launch pad and is preparing for the first launch from the new facility. The company is also exploring international launch sites for Starship operations. (https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2026/05/spacex-starship-pad-first-launch/) Firefly Aerospace — Cedar Park, TX [LAUNCH] • May 13 — Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost Mission 4 successfully completed its preliminary design review (PDR), a major development milestone for its lunar south pole expedition planned for later this decade. (https://orbitaltoday.com/2026/05/14/fireflys-blue-ghost-mission-4-clears-major-design-milestone-ahead-of-lunar-south-pole-mission/) INDUSTRY CONTEXT ---------------- Satellite Industry Association — Washington, DC [OPS UPDATE] • May 13 — The Satellite Industry Association released its 29th annual State of the Satellite Industry Report, highlighting a historic 296 launches in 2025, driven by improved affordability, productivity, and new market creation. (https://sia.org/affordability-productivity-drive-historic-satellite-industry-growth-satellite-industry-association-releases-29th-annual-state-of-the-satellite-industry-report/) Eutelsat — Paris, France [OPS UPDATE] • May 13 — Eutelsat reported Q3 revenue of €293 million ($343 million), with LEO-driven revenue up 65% year-over-year and strong growth in mobile connectivity services. (https://www.satellitetoday.com/finance/2026/05/13/eutelsat-shows-strong-growth-in-leo-services-and-mobility-in-q3/) SES — Luxembourg [OPS UPDATE] • May 13 — SES extended its IRIS² review period as the European constellation consortium reached an initial project milestone during its first-quarter 2026 earnings call. (https://satnews.com/2026/05/13/ses-extends-iris%c2%b2-review-as-consortium-reaches-initial-project-milestone/) ADDITIONAL UPDATES ------------------ Blue Origin — Kent, WA [OPS UPDATE] • May 13 — Blue Origin's Blue Moon Mark 2 lunar lander mockup has been assembled at NASA's Johnson Space Center and is ready for Artemis astronaut training exercises. (https://www.space.com/space-exploration/artemis/blue-origins-lunar-lander-mockup-is-ready-for-nasa-artemis-astronaut-training) Northrop Grumman — Falls Church, VA [OPS UPDATE] • May 13 — Northrop Grumman announced the LR-450 lunar navigation system, derived from James Webb Space Telescope technology, designed for spacecraft operating beyond GPS coverage in cislunar space. (https://spacenews.com/northrop-grumman-targets-lunar-navigation-market-with-webb-derived-guidance-system/) iDirect Government — Herndon, VA [OPS UPDATE] • May 13 — iDirect Government launched the 450 Rackmount software-defined modem for multi-orbit defense applications, expanding its military satellite communications portfolio. (https://satnews.com/2026/05/13/idirect-government-launches-450-rackmount-software-defined-modem-for-multi-orbit-defense/) Mitsubishi Heavy Industries — Tokyo, Japan [OPS UPDATE] • May 13 — Mitsubishi Heavy Industries successfully tested its AIRIS onboard AI system in orbit, demonstrating real-time ship detection directly from a satellite without ground processing. (https://orbitaltoday.com/2026/05/13/mhis-airis-system-uses-onboard-ai-to-detect-ships-directly-from-orbit/) Cerebras Systems — Sunnyvale, CA [FUNDING] • May 13 — AI chip startup Cerebras Systems is making its public-market debut on the Nasdaq after years of private fundraising, facing strong demand for IPO shares. (https://news.crunchbase.com/ai/cerebras-ipo-cbrs/) ============================================================ Generated by space.haus · AI-curated from 50+ industry sources. Verify before making business decisions.