ESA’s programme aligns long-term industrial investment with in-orbit validation to build globally competitive satellite systems and services.
Aerospace company SWISSto12 has announced securing €73 million in financial support from European Space Agency (ESA) member states through the HummingSat ARTES partnership project.
SWISSto12 is a manufacturer of advanced satellite systems and radio frequency (RF) products, enabling a transformational shift in the global satellite communications industry, away from legacy large, purpose-built, expensive and slow-to-deploy solutions towards smaller, faster, cheaper assets that leverage software-defined, reconfigurable payload architectures and agile, multi-orbit capabilities.
The global need for SatCom is rising, reflecting a growing demand for always-on broadband internet connectivity for aircraft and ships, secure communications for sovereign governments, internet in remote regions, safety-relevant services, IoT devices and location-based services.
Developed in partnership with ESA and scheduled for first launch in 2027, the HummingSat platform is significantly smaller and more cost-efficient than legacy geostationary satellites. It gives customers a flexible, cost-effective platform to expand transponder capacity, enable network flexibility and reconfigurable software-defined payloads, deploy sovereign capabilities and introduce new services with agility.
Federating the future of satcom: Inside ESA’s ARTES Partnership Projects programme
The Partnership Projects programme line of ESA’s Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems (ARTES) drives innovation by federating ambitious large-scale, long-term collaborations between ESA, private companies, and satellite operators.
The programme establishes ESA as a key partner in developing major satellite communication systems, new value-adding solutions and services, and providing in-orbit validation.
It focuses on substantial, industry-shaping initiatives that require significant investment spanning over several years. By closely aligning technological ambition with commercial strategy, ARTES Partnership Projects enable European and Canadian organisations to push the boundaries of satellite communications and strengthen their competitiveness on the global market.
The funding will accelerate SWISSto12’s development and industrialisation of HummingSat, as well as scaling up its manufacturing capacity and accelerating new product innovations.
These initiatives address increasing global demand for cost-effective, agile and sovereign communications in both government and commercial sectors.
The investment will also allow SWISSto12 to further develop its phased-array antenna technologies to be used onboard LEO/MEO/GEO satellite payloads and ground products such as user terminals. This will strengthen its ability to serve a broad set of customer needs, for communications from and to geostationary and non-geostationary orbits.
Laurent Jaffart, ESA Director of Connectivity and Secure Communications, said:
“We are proud to continue our support of SWISSto12, particularly in creating cost-effective solutions for satellite systems that answer to the satcom ecosystem’s ever-increasing demands.
ESA is committed to elevating Europe’s future in space through our support of industry, and by accelerating next-generation satellite technologies.”
According to Emile de Rijk, CEO and Founder of SWISSto12, the recent subscriptions of Member States and Cooperating States at the ESA Ministerial Council to the HummingSat Project.
“The latest round of funding from European private investors sends a strong message to the global market that SWISSto12 is at the heart of satellite communications innovation.
With our growing suite of agile, cost-effective and highly performant SatCom solutions, we provide a credible answer to some of the most pressing challenges facing the space economy, including the critical issue of enabling satellite sovereignty – something, until now, out of reach for most of the world’s nations.”