Bridgit Mendler, a former Disney Channel star and singer known for her roles in "Good Luck Charlie" and "Wizards of Waverly Place," is venturing into the space industry as the CEO of Northwood Space-a startup based in El Segundo, California.
Mendler, who studied at MIT and Harvard Law School, aims to revolutionize how satellite data is transmitted between Earth and space.
The startup's unique approach involves fast production and deployment flexibility for satellite ground stations, aiming to deliver them "within days, not months." This strategy is intended to assist satellite operators in quickly adapting their networks to support Earth-based activities.
Initially targeting services for satellites in low Earth orbit, Northwood Space aims to alleviate the bottleneck issue in shared ground stations, making it easier for customers to find available teleports.
Bridgit Mendler's Space Data Startup
According to CNBC, Mendler envisioned Northwood Space as a "data highway between Earth and space," and plans to focus on mass-producing ground stations rather than building rockets or satellites.
Ground stations, also known as teleports, are crucial for connecting to satellites in space. The startup aims to streamline the process of sending and receiving data to and from space, therefore, addressing the current challenges in accessing satellite communication points.
The idea for Northwood Space originated during the Covid-19 pandemic when Mendler and her family were spending time at a lake in New Hampshire.
While others were occupied with various activities, Mendler and her family were building antennas and receiving data from NOAA satellites.
From Disney Star to a Star
The startup has already secured about $6 million in initial funding from major venture investors, including Founders Fund, Andreessen Horowitz, and Also Capital.
Mendler is leading Northwood Space alongside co-founders Griffin Cleverly, the startup's chief technology officer and Mendler's husband, and Shaurya Luthra, the head of software.
Both Cleverly and Luthra bring engineering expertise from their experiences at Lockheed Martin and other organizations in the space industry.
Besides that, Northwood Space also aspires to provide a similar experience for its customers as cloud service providers like Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure. This allows space companies to avoid the capital expenditure of building and operating their own ground station networks.
The startup plans to conduct its first test connecting to a spacecraft in orbit later this year.
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