MC EXCLUSIVE Starlink's UK-based rival Open Cosmos eyes India partnerships as it builds alternative to mega satellite constellations

Open Cosmos CEO

• Open Cosmos aims for stronger satellite project ties with India
• Company aims to build a global satellite network for secure data
• Open Cosmos plans to manufacture up to 200 satellites annually

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Space technology company Open Cosmos is looking to deepen partnerships with India as it scales its satellite manufacturing and telecom constellation ambitions, with chief executive Rafel Jorda Siquier highlighting India’s growing capabilities in the global space ecosystem.

“We want to be a player that helps enable capabilities for multiple countries from a neutral perspective, rather than relying on the capabilities of just one country — whether from the US or China. In Europe, we have amazing traction. Most of our sovereign customers have already procured satellites from us. The partnerships between Europe, India and Southeast Asia in this multipolar world will be absolutely key and critical," Siquier said in an interview with Moneycontrol on the sidelines of Mobile World Congress.

“The knowledge and capabilities that India has, and some of the companies there, are absolutely phenomenal,” he said, adding, “that’s another angle with which we want to partner.”

The company is seeking to build partnerships across the global space ecosystem — including launch providers and technology companies — to reduce reliance on a handful of dominant satellite connectivity providers.

"We want to build bridges and collaboration, and avoid dependencies on single individuals or players that could literally shut down connectivity if they wanted. It is much better to be diversified and to have multiple partnerships.”

“We want to partner with companies all over the world for launches — from Europe, from the US, from India. India has amazing launchers, and being able to bring them together through partnerships and a mutual goal of global impact will help deploy this infrastructure to serve the world," he said.

The Oxford-headquartered startup is developing a satellite network called Connected Cosmos, aimed at providing sovereign communications as an alternative to large transcontinental mega-constellations.

The company, which has expanded into Portugal and Spain, recently launched two low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites as testbeds for the broader constellation. The next phase involves deploying a larger polar-orbiting satellite network to enable global coverage.

Open Cosmos also plans to manufacture up to 200 satellites annually, positioning the system as a European alternative for governments and businesses that currently rely on Starlink, operated by Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

The move comes as some European policymakers have raised concerns over heavy reliance on Starlink — widely used in Ukraine since the Russian invasion of Ukraine — given the concentration of such critical infrastructure in the hands of a single private provider.

Open Cosmos designs, manufactures and operates satellites and is positioning itself around two core capabilities: understanding the world through satellite data and connecting it through space-based communications.

For Earth observation, the company operates remote sensing satellites that capture imagery and data from space, which are then processed to generate insights on climate and natural resources. On the communications side, its Connected Cosmos constellation will use Ka-band global spectrum recently secured by the company to enable secure point-to-point connectivity.

“It will enable very secure point-to-point connectivity and link our sensing satellites so that we can provide real-time insights,” Siquier said.

Demand for satellite data is rising across industries focused on environmental monitoring and resource management. Open Cosmos is seeing strong interest in applications such as identifying risks related to wildfires, floods and desertification, as well as monitoring energy consumption, extraction activities and natural resource use.

Other sectors include mining, agriculture and environmental sustainability, where satellite imagery and analytics help track changes on the ground.

Governments are also increasingly seeking sovereign and resilient communications infrastructure, particularly in situations where terrestrial networks fail.

“When ground infrastructure goes down because of a hurricane, a disaster or a conflict, having secure satellite connectivity becomes absolutely critical,” Siquier said.

To support its expansion, Open Cosmos is scaling manufacturing capacity and currently operates four satellite production facilities, with factories running at full capacity to produce spacecraft for upcoming launches.

“Our factories are producing satellites continuously,” Siquier said. “In terms of constellation size, it will be as big as we can deploy.”

The company has built a profitable satellite manufacturing business, selling spacecraft to governments and large corporations for nearly a decade. According to Siquier, Open Cosmos has remained profitable for the past five years, supported by a vertically integrated manufacturing model that keeps costs competitive.

While investor interest in the space sector remains strong, Siquier said the key challenge lies in execution.

“Funding is not the bottleneck,” he said. “The real challenge is developing the technology on time and ensuring launch capacity is available.”

Open Cosmos is entering an increasingly competitive satellite connectivity market where players such as Starlink, Project Kuiper, and Eutelsat OneWeb are rapidly expanding their networks.

However, Siquier said Open Cosmos is pursuing a different strategy by focusing on backbone connectivity for governments, telecom operators and enterprises, rather than direct-to-device consumer services.

“Those companies are focused on direct-to-device connectivity for consumers,” he said. “Our role is more about providing the backbone of connectivity for telecom networks and governments.”

Looking ahead, Siquier expects the satellite industry to increasingly converge around data, connectivity and artificial intelligence, as machines and infrastructure become as important to connect as people.

“Connectivity and Earth observation are often treated as two different worlds, but we see them as two sides of the same coin,” he said.

“In the future, it will not only be about connecting humans — we will also need to connect machines so they can make intelligent decisions quickly. That requires sensing data, compute, AI and connectivity all working together.”