Planet Labs PBC (NYSE: PL), a leading provider of daily data and insights about Earth, has signed a new contract with the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA). NCIA’s Alliance Persistent Surveillance from Space (APSS) program will use Planet’s SkySat high-resolution satellite data to support NATO missions.
Planet’s tasking capabilities will empower NATO decision makers by providing imagery for use with detailed tracking and analysis of foreign military capabilities and activities, monitoring of military infrastructure, detecting movements, assessing threats effectively, filling missing intelligence gaps and helping provide an unclassified common operating picture between allies.
Founded in February 2023, APSS is a multi-year, multinational initiative that aims to use space to collect data on any location at any given time, increase space-based intelligence sharing, improve NATO’s overall intelligence through space-based assets, and increase the speed, usability and management efficiency at which space-based data is collected, aggregated and delivered. APSS also enhances how NATO engages with future technologies including cloud solutions and AI analytical tools that will be key to better manage the growing amounts of space data available.
This contract highlights Planet’s continued business growth in the government sector this year, following a recently announced contract expansion with a U.S.-allied International Government Agency and a pilot contract signed with an International Ministry of Defense Customer.
“In a time of heightened global conflict, this ability to supply NATO is more critical than ever to reinforce multinational alliances and advance peace around the world through transparency and accountability from space,” said Will Marshall, co-founder and CEO of Planet. “We look forward to working with the APSS team as it continues to adopt new space technology to advance global security.”
“Space is critical for NATO, from supporting the navigation and tracking of forces, detecting missile launches, maintaining situational awareness, to ensuring effective command and control,” said Laryssa Patten, Head of Space Technology Adoption and Resilience at NCIA. “Planet’s sub-daily tasking brings new capabilities which enable monitoring of large areas of NATO interest, bolstering our technological advantage, and fulfilling our mission of preserving peace and security for nearly one billion people.”