AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTS) has announced a strategic realignment of its executive leadership team including the appointment of Scott Wisniewski, who currently serves as Chief Strategy Officer, to the additional role of President, Shanti Gupta, who currently serves as Chief Accounting Officer, as Chief Operations Officer, and Andrew Johnson, who currently serves as Chief Legal Officer, to the additional role of Chief Financial Officer.
The strategic realignment is designed to leverage the proven track record of members of AST SpaceMobile’s existing leadership and position the company for success in its next phase of accelerated growth.
By harnessing the capabilities and experience of members of its existing leadership team, AST SpaceMobile seeks to create an environment where executives can maximize their proven ability to accelerate commercialization, scale operations, and drive financial discipline to achieve the company’s ambitious goals.
Scott Wisniewski, AST SpaceMobile’s Chief Strategy Officer, will be stepping into the additional role of President, leveraging his extensive industry experience to oversee a broader scope encompassing commercialization efforts, product development, and regulatory affairs, in addition to continuing to lead capital markets strategy, corporate development and investor relations. Since joining AST SpaceMobile in March 2021, Wisniewski has driven significant corporate agreements and milestones for the company, including raising over $600 million of capital in the form of equity, convertible notes, and non-dilutive prepayments for the company. With this strategic realignment, he will broaden his focus to include driving revenue and growth and working to ensure the seamless transition from strategy to execution for the AST SpaceMobile network.
Shanti Gupta, currently Chief Accounting Officer, will be promoted to the role of Chief Operating Officer. In addition to his role as Chief Accounting Officer, Gupta has been driving many aspects of the company operations including supply chain, vendor relationships and negotiations, cost optimization, risk management, and information technology. As AST SpaceMobile transitions from technology development to full-scale manufacturing and production, Gupta’s full time focus on operations, institutional knowledge of the business, and leadership will be crucial in enhancing operational excellence, driving cost efficiencies, and making this critical phase of global expansion successful.
Andrew Johnson, AST SpaceMobile’s Chief Legal Officer, will serve in the additional role of Chief Financial Officer. Johnson’s deep understanding of the finance and legal landscape will be invaluable as AST SpaceMobile continues its global expansion. Johnson will oversee all aspects of accounting, reporting, treasury, compliance, risk management, and global legal matters. This expanded role provides strong financial and legal stewardship at full-scale manufacturing and commercialization of the AST SpaceMobile network. Johnson joined AST SpaceMobile in May from 3D Systems Corporation, –a publicly traded provider of 3D printers, where he served in senior roles including EVP, Chief Corporate Development Officer and Chief Legal Officer, Interim President and CEO, and Interim CFO.
“By aligning our executive leadership’s proven strengths with the evolving needs of the company, we believe we are primed for significant progress as we enter the next phase of commercialization,” said Abel Avellan, Founder, Chairman and CEO of AST SpaceMobile. “This strategic realignment is designed to empower each executive to maximize their impact, accelerating our mission of eliminating connectivity gaps and delivering space-based cellular broadband to people everywhere whenever they need it. We are grateful to Sean Wallace, our outgoing Chief Financial Officer, for his leadership and contributions to AST SpaceMobile. His financial expertise was critical as we navigated a period of significant R&D, formation of key strategic partnerships, and validation of our technology, positioning us for rapid acceleration as we transition to commercial execution. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors and appreciate that he will consult for the company for a transition period.”