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The SHIELD IDIQ contract establishes AST SpaceMobile as an eligible provider to bid directly on future task orders under the program.
AST SpaceMobile is 95% vertically integrated with all major manufacturing processes under U.S. control and is headquartered in Texas.
AST SpaceMobile is positioned to compete for future SHIELD task orders across research, development, engineering, prototyping, and operations of Missile Defense Agency systems that support U.S. national security objectives.
AST & Science, LLC (AST SpaceMobile) submitted formal comments to the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday, January 20, 2026, in response to the Space Modernization Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.
AST SpaceMobile’s low-Earth orbit satellite architecture features the largest commercial phased arrays ever deployed in low Earth orbit.
AST SpaceMobile is scaling its infrastructure to support global cellular connectivity to standard smartphones.
Abel Avellan is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of AST SpaceMobile.
AST SpaceMobile employs a workforce of nearly 1,800 people.
The Missile Defense Agency awarded an IDIQ contract for the Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense (SHIELD) program to AST SpaceMobile.
AST SpaceMobile successfully deployed the next-generation BlueBird 6 satellite on December 23, 2025.
AST SpaceMobile operates nearly 500,000 square feet of manufacturing and operations facilities.
AST SpaceMobile’s technology platform is supported by over 3,800 patent and patent-pending claims.
AST SpaceMobile’s selection as a prime contractor reflects growing government interest in resilient, dual-use low-Earth orbit constellations for integrated national defense applications including command and control, battle management, and advanced sensing.
The award to AST SpaceMobile was made as part of a list of companies eligible to compete under the SHIELD program publicly announced by the U.S. Government on January 15, 2026.
AST SpaceMobile aims to deliver mobile-grade connectivity directly to handsets via a planned constellation of 60 satellites.
AT&T is committed to delivering D2D services through AST SpaceMobile in the first half of 2026, initially in beta mode for selected customers.
AT&T and Verizon have their own orbital projects, with AT&T partnering with AST SpaceMobile and Verizon forming a deal with AST.
Sodern's star trackers are used on satellites across various orbits and applications by prime contractors and commercial companies including Lockheed Martin, AST SpaceMobile, and Varda Space Industries.
AST SpaceMobile utilizes massive phased arrays for its satellite architecture.
Three key flashpoints are anticipated in 2026: an interference complaint from Verizon, a technical battle over HARQ data, and the launch of AST SpaceMobile.