Latest news with #Avellan
NDTV
26-05-2025
- Business
- NDTV
Abel Avellan: The Elon Musk Rival Who Is Helping Connect Phones From Space
Washington: AST SpaceMobile, a key rival of Elon Musk's Starlink, aims to establish a network to allow satellite internet to beam directly to smartphones even in the most remote areas. It will keep the devices connected even when they are not in the range of a tower. For now, this is possible only via special hardware on expensive satellite phones. AST SpaceMobile CEO and founder Abel Avellan told Forbes that the company's vision was to "provide connectivity without disadvantage to wherever people are located". The company took an early step in this direction when it launched five satellites onboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket from Florida's Cape Canaveral in September last year. Each of them is equipped with a 700-square-foot antenna, which will unfold in orbit. The antenna sizes hold the key to Avellan's goal of major success in an all-new market. This will help beam satellite internet directly to smartphones. On the other hand, SpaceX utilises thousands of satellites that connect one and all to the internet. These 700-square-foot antennas will be succeeded by way larger 2,400-square-foot versions in the future, the report said. Through these large-sized antennas, AST SpaceMobile is eying global coverage with only 90 satellites. Out of these, the company looks forward to launching 60 into orbit by 2026 end. The Falcon 9 rocket, which took flight for the 373rd time last September, carried Starlink satellites to join over 7,100 others that Musk already has encircling the planet. In a regulatory filing, SpaceX earlier derided AST SpaceMobile satellites as a "meme stock". Starlink's $12.3 billion in revenue is driven by internet access to the fixed-base stations that remain attached to households and businesses but not smartphones. Similarly, Jeff Bezos' Project Kuiper does not have its eye set on this. In April, it launched the first set of 27 satellites that are part of the planned 3,200-plus project. Starlink is currently doing beta testing with T-Mobile. This allows its users to send text using the Starlink network when they don't have a signal on their devices. Compared to the $350 billion valuation of Starlink, the Texas-based AST SpaceMobile only holds a market cap of $8.7 billion as of now. A major opportunity for AST SpaceMobile is to provide internet to over 2.6 billion people, majorly in developing nations, rather than providing off-grid connectivity in Europe and North America. This is because not all of them can afford Starlink, Forbes reported. The basic base station facility of Starlink begins at $350, while people need to pay roughly $80 per month for Wi-Fi at home. For broadband, Avellan said the "cheapest and most efficient way" is via phone.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
AST SpaceMobile: Satellite Service For Consumers Slated For Early 2026
PCMag editors select and review products independently. If you buy through affiliate links, we may earn commissions, which help support our testing. AST SpaceMobile is still playing catch up to SpaceX's cellular Starlink system. But despite the gap, the company is racing to kick off its own initial service starting about six months from now. AST's CEO Abel Avellan mentioned the aggressive timeline in an earnings call on Monday. 'The idea is to have a beta service sometime by the end of this year. A commercial service fully open for consumers sometime during early 2026,' he said. 'Our plan is for this service to be text, internet, data and access to applications like video conferencing.' Avellan mentioned the timeline as SpaceX's cellular Starlink system is already available to T-Mobile customers through a free beta program. In July, the carrier then plans on officially launching the service as 'T-Satellite,' which will cost $10 per month for most consumers, including those on rival carriers. In contrast, AST has only launched five 'BlueBird' satellites for its own system when it needs at least 45 to 60 satellites to begin offering continuous service across the US and other markets. In addition, the company still has to secure regulatory approval from the Federal Communications Commission before it can commercially offer the service to customers through key partners including AT&T and Verizon. But in Monday's earnings call, AST provided some details on how it plans to close the gap with SpaceX as both companies vie to provide satellite connectivity to cellular dead zones. In Monday's earnings presentation, the company said it plans on holding five satellite launches over the next six to nine months. (The first launch, carrying a prototype next-generation BlueBird satellite, is scheduled for July though India's space agency.) In addition, AST anticipates 'orbital launches every one to two months on average during 2025 and 2026," it said. The company is also on track to manufacture 40 second-generation BlueBird satellites for this year, "for over 50 satellites in total." However, AST executives declined to say how many satellites will be flown during each upcoming rocket launch. So the size of the initial constellation remains unclear. That said, during the call, the company noted it only needs 25 satellites to start offering 'non-continuous' service to users, meaning it can start generating revenue, but at the expense of coverage gaps. In other words, it looks like the company is betting it can operate around 25 satellites by the end of this year or early 2026. During the call, AST executives also said the company was paying more for its BlueBird satellites, partly because it's trying to move quickly to build the constellation. 'The demand signals we are receiving is to get the service to market as fast as possible,' said AST President Scott Wisniewski. 'So what you're seeing is essentially a little bit of pull forward on launch, in a time when launch is harder to get, so we spent a little bit more than anticipated to get the timeline moving fast.' The other issue is that Trump's tariffs have been raising the costs for the raw materials to build the satellites. Each BlueBird satellite now costs between $21 to 23 million to manufacture and launch, up from $19 to $22 million. In an FCC filing, AST also notes its longer-term goal is operate 243 satellites by 2028.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bookkeeper pleads guilty to stealing $4M from New Jersey trucking company
A New Jersey woman has pleaded guilty to stealing roughly $4 million from her employer, a trucking company, to fund her gambling habit. Jeanette Avellan pleaded guilty to charges involving theft from West End Express, based in South Brunswick. The company's website describes it as a truckload carrier and drayage provider. Avellan pleaded guilty to second-degree theft of movable property, third-degree failure to pay income taxes and third-degree filing a fraudulent tax return. The guilty plea comes with a recommended sentence of four years in state prison, according to a prepared statement from state Attorney General Matthew Platkin. 'Employers need to know the people they hire to handle sensitive financial duties can be trusted to do their jobs honestly and professionally,' Theresa L. Hilton, director of the state's Division of Criminal Justice, said in the statement. The DCJ also participated in the investigation. 'Unfortunately, in this case, the defendant's gambling habit led her to steal from her employer and then try to hide her theft by filing fraudulent tax returns.' At the plea hearing, according to the release from the attorney general, Avellan said she was a bookkeeper for West End Express beginning in 2005. Her theft of the $4 million occurred between January 2017 and January 2023. Avellan said at the plea hearing that she did not declare any of the stolen funds as income when filing her tax returns. Restitution is set at $4.03 million to her victims and about $560,000 to the state for back taxes and penalties. She will be formally sentenced May 9 in Monmouth County. More articles by John Kingston Breaking from the FreightTech AI pack: Companies make their case at TIA meeting New Mack long-haul truck makes grand entrance in bid for market share ATBS says independent drivers earned a little more in '24 but drove more as well The post Bookkeeper pleads guilty to stealing $4M from New Jersey trucking company appeared first on FreightWaves.
