Khaberni - The Chinese company "Space Sail", a competitor to Elon Musk's "Starlink" network, has launched a new funding round aimed at accelerating its plans to expand its satellite network and strengthen its presence in the global markets.
The Chinese newspaper "Securities Times" reported that the new round would grant new investors no more than 20% of the shares of "Space Sail", with the number of new investors limited to three, with current shareholders participating in the capital increase.
The proceeds from the funding round will be used to build the satellite constellation, fund research and development activities, expand into foreign markets, and cover operating expenses.
"Space Sail," backed by the Shanghai government, is receiving increasing attention as it is considered the main Chinese project competing with "Starlink" in the low-orbit internet market.
The Chinese company aims to deploy up to 15,000 satellites in low Earth orbit by 2030, and has already succeeded in signing foreign contracts in markets like Brazil as part of its international expansion plans.
The Chinese move comes at a time when the satellite internet sector is experiencing accelerated competition, with countries and major companies striving to build satellite networks that provide global internet services, and support communications, defense, and the digital economy applications.
Technical Developments
Space Sail's ambitions extend beyond just numerical expansion in satellites, as the company recently achieved a technological milestone by conducting direct voice calls through satellites using ordinary commercial smartphones without any modifications to the devices or software.
The company stated that the experiment, the first of its kind in China, demonstrated complete stability in the connection and voice quality comparable to terrestrial fifth-generation networks, enhancing the prospects of integrating space communication services with traditional mobile networks.
This development comes after China earlier in June launched the satellite "Space Sail DTC 01", designed to test direct communication technologies with mobile phones and integrated space-terrestrial telecommunication networks, supporting fifth and sixth generation communication applications.
As of June 5, there are about 200 satellites operating within the "Space Sail" constellation, as part of the company's plan to deploy about 15,000 satellites by 2030.
Starlink Competition
The new funding round coincided with SpaceX, the owner of "Starlink", conducting the largest initial public offering in history, after raising about $85.7 billion from its shares listing on the New York Stock Exchange.
Observers believe that the acceleration of Space Sail's financing reflects China's desire to close the gap with "Starlink", which currently owns the world's largest satellite internet network and enjoys a broad presence in dozens of countries.
