SATELLITE 2022 Preview: New Programs Pack a Powerful Speaker Lineup

The SATELLITE 2022 conference and exhibition comes at a time of peak activity involving public and private investment, a rapid expansion of the off-world economy, a massive deployment of satellite constellations, increased urgency for sustainable space operations, and broad coordination on policy and open standards. The show takes place at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., from March 21 to 24. Just six months after SATELLITE 2021, the SATELLITE 2022 conference features our most inclusive program to date – with more than 225 speakers representing nearly 200 commercial space companies, government organizations, and global space agencies.

Aside from the people involved, the topic scope of this year’s program also reflects the increasing diversity of space technologies. If you look at our schedule of conference sessions, you’ll notice an emphasis on the interoperability of the modern satellite network architecture. Satellites connect with end users, terminals, and other satellites in completely new ways, opening the door to support a whole new world of applications. While our conference programs usually address both opportunities and challenges in equal amounts, this is the most opportunity-heavy program we’ve put together. In this feature, we’ll explore some of the highlights and unique new programs available to SATELLITE 2022 attendees.

Top of the Program

The SATELLITE 2022 program comprises two keynote luncheon event and three general sessions. During the opening day keynote luncheon, “The Space Industry’s Great Climate Opportunity,” (Monday at 12:30 p.m.) special guests Ann Kim, managing director of the Frontier Technology Group at Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), and Chad Anderson, founder and managing partner of Space Capital, will sit for a fireside chat interview focusing on the space industry's incredible opportunities that can be created through broader investment in space-based climate monitoring technologies. (Conference-level pass required for entry)

For 41 years, SATELLITE’s day two opening general session has marked the official opening of the exhibit hall. This year’s opening general session, “A Defining Era for the Satellite Industry,” hosts some of the industry’s most influential executive leaders in a discussion about how the satellite industry is evolving from the margins to the mainstream of the connectivity ecosystem. Speakers for this session include: Mark Dankberg, executive chairman and co-founder of Viasat; John Finney, founder and CEO of Isotropic Systems; Tina Ghataore, chief commercial officer of Mynaric; Neil Masterson, CEO of OneWeb; Dan Goldberg, president and CEO of Telesat; and Sarah Schellpfeffer, sector vice president and chief technology officer for Northrop Grumman’s Space Sector. The session will include an exploration of how technology advances in orbit and on the ground are expanding the capability and reach of satellite communications and shaping the future of the industry as a whole. (Open to all attendees)

The SATELLITE 2022 conference Finance and Executive Forums represent our strongest line-up of space and satellite industry executives ever assembled. The Finance Forum, produced in partnership with NSR, returns to SATELLITE 2022 with sessions taking place on Monday. The focus of this year’s Finance Forum will move from SPACs, to the role of governments in private sector financing, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing, and the blossoming space tourism industry. (Executive All-Access passes required for entry)

On Tuesday and Wednesday, our executive level programming continues with sessions co-produced by Euroconsult and the Global Satellite Operators Association (GSOA). These top-level conference sessions will see the debut appearance of Eutelsat’s new CEO Eva Berneke, the return of Intelsat CEO Stephen Spengler (likely his last appearance on behalf of Intelsat before his retirement), SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell speaking on a satellite operators panel, and a space sustainability session featuring Amazon’s Kalpak Gude and the National Science Foundation’s Richard Green. (Executive All-Access passes required for entry)

On Wednesday, SATELLITE 2022 will host its annual Awards Luncheon, during which Via Satellite’s 2021 Executive of the Year and Technology of the Year award winners are announced. We will also be announcing the winner of our sixth annual Startup Space Entrepreneur Pitch Contest. (Conference-level pass required for entry)

Startup Space, which takes place in the exhibit hall theater on Tuesday, is designed to stimulate investment and growth in the industry by setting up private meetings for the grand prize winner. This year’s grand prize winner will receive 30-minute guaranteed pitch meetings with our investor judge’s firms, including Starbridge Venture Capital, Space Fund, MaC Venture Capital, Toyota Ventures, Seraphim Capital, Data Collective Venture Capital, and MoonshotX. The contest is being produced in partnership with Rafferty Jackson of Jack Industries, who has moved financing deals for dozens of space startups and clothing companies and even served as an executive vice president at Beats when it scored its big distribution partnership with Apple. (Open to all attendees)

The Satellite Industry Association (SIA), our programing partner on the SATELLITE 2022 Government and Military Forum, will host its special guest keynote speaker on Wednesday. While the details of the keynote will be announced soon, SIA’s current line-up of speakers includes top-ranking government and military officials from the U.S. Space Force, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army, and National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), with other organizations such as NASA, Space Development Agency (SDA), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Anatel, and International Telecommunication Union (ITU) also represented on the conference program. (Government & Military Forum pass or All-Access Executive pass required for entry)

SATELLITE 2022 closes with two top-level executive forum sessions on Thursday. The first of these sessions gathers the executive leaders of the New Space movement's largest and most influential companies to explain their visions of a future space economy. The group will outline the infrastructure and financing needed to build a prosperous and sustainable future space economy. Participants include: Rob Meyerson, founder and CEO, Delalune Space; Andrew Rush, president and COO of Redwire; Shagun Sachdeva, founder of Kosmic Apple; Dr. Sara Spangelo, CEO of Swarm Technologies; and Nuno Sebastião co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Feedzai and Investor Neuraspace. (Conference-level pass required for entry)

Our final closing session, “How Satellite Industry Leaders are Preparing for the Challenges Ahead,” brings the CEOs of global and regional space companies such as Kymeta, Airbus, Mynaric, Momentus, Telespazio, and SpaceLink on stage to discuss how they're planning to tackle the industry's greatest challenges ahead — ranging from access to space, to increased competition, to cost of innovation, and beyond. (Conference-level passes required for entry)

What’s New at SATELLITE 2022

In addition to returning programs such as Startup Space, the SGx keynote series event produced by Space Generation Advisory Council, and the Government & Military Forum, SATELLITE 2022 features two new programs designed to expand our community and increase our coverage of the rapidly growing space data sector.

This year, SATELLITE partnered with the Space Frontier Foundation to launch “Inclusive Innovation” — a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) program that will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday. The program will include three, one hour-long sessions and workshops designed to bring space professionals of all ages, backgrounds, and culture together to share ideas on how to create more positive, inclusive work environments and more diversity among entrepreneurs. Most importantly, Inclusive Innovation attendees will receive a DEI tool kit developed by Space Frontier Foundation to help companies achieve their diversity goals.

Kim Macharia, chair of the board of directors of Space Frontier Foundation, said the decision to partner with SATELLITE on a DEI forum event came in the wake of recent discourse about inclusivity in the workplace. “Our programming will feature a collective of passionate advocates and allies engaging in constructive conversations,” says Macharia. “We hope attendees will walk away with actionable steps on how to make our industry more welcoming and inclusive so that they can go back to their workplace and begin to create the world we want to see."

Inclusive Innovation’s participating companies include: ABL, BlackSky, Blue Origin, Aerospace, Virgin Orbit, Voyager, Acquarian Space, SPACE for a Better World, Nanoracks, Orbit Fab, Momentus, and the FAA. The program’s sessions include workshops on how to hire and retain diverse talent, how to assess DEI successes and shortcomings, and how to empower junior- and senior-level employees in the workplace.(Conference-level pass required for entry)

SATELLITE 2022 is also proud to announce the launch of a new conference track — The Geo-Intelligence Workshop — focused on data analytics services from space. Right now, thousands of satellites are capturing endless streams of data, providing boundless insights into our world. Satellite data providers are problem solvers, tasked with translating that data into a valuable solution for the end user. This data can drive decisions that impact millions of lives, global businesses, and government action. Taking place on Monday, Geo-Intelligence Workshop attendees will learn how the space data industry engages with customers to understand their unique problems and provide the unique tools needed to make the right decisions.

The first workshop, “How Space Data Influences Decision-Making on Earth,” hosts U.S. Army Tactical Network Manager Col. Shane Taylor in a discussion led by Deloitte’s Jeff Matthews about how government and enterprise end-users are increasingly relying on space data services to make important tactical decisions. The panel also features: Emiliano Kargieman, CEO of Satellogic; Kevin O’ Brien, CEO of Orbital Insight; and Nicole Robinson, president of Ursa Space Systems.

This will be followed by three other Geo-Intelligence workshops happening throughout the day: Advancements in Satellite Mapping, Tracking, and Monitoring; Environmental Data for National Security and Public Safety; and Synthetic-Aperture Radar (SAR) and Multi-Dimensional Data. (Government & Military Forum pass or All-Access Executive pass required for entry)

This list is just a glimpse of a larger program that covers every satellite service and technology you can imagine. SATELLITE 2022 is proud of its inclusive approach to industry education and we hope you will be able to join us at this year’s event. For a complete list of SATELLITE 2022 activities, visit satshow.com/program/. For more information on SATELLITE 2022’s COVID and safety guidelines, visit satshow.com/covid-and-safety/. VS