Scout Space
Scout Space develops electro-optical and infrared satellite sensors (Owl, Sparrow) plus onboard autonomy software for space domain awareness, primarily serving the U.S. Space Force, AFWERX, and NASA with hardware sales, hosted-payload integration, and mission-design services.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- HeadquartersReston, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Scout Space does
Scout Space, Inc. is a privately held U.S. aerospace technology company founded in 2019 and headquartered in Reston, Virginia, that builds in-space electro-optical and infrared sensing systems plus onboard autonomy software for satellite awareness and orbital safety. Its hardware product line consists of two sensor families: Owl, a long-range, gimbaled, independently taskable sensor designed for space domain awareness missions in LEO, GEO, and Lunar orbits, and Sparrow, a low-SWAP close-range multi-phenomenology optical system for rendezvous and proximity operations-defensive (RPO-D) in LEO. These sensors are complemented by a Mission Autonomy Software stack developed with the U.S. Space Force, edge-processing compute configurations, and a Mission Design modeling and simulation platform; the company also distributes a SpaceSight™ mission-planning visualization tool through Saber Astronautics' Space Application Marketplace.
Scout's business model is anchored in U.S. government contracting — Tactical Funding Increase (TACFI) Sequential Phase II awards from Space Force Space Systems Command's Space Safari Office, AFWERX and NASA SBIR awards, and DARPA programs — alongside commercial hardware integration onto partner spacecraft such as Blue Origin's Blue Ring, Dawn Aerospace's Mk-II Aurora spaceplane, and Pulse Space's satellite. Revenue is generated through direct contract revenue (professional services), sensor hardware sales and hosted-payload integration, mission design and engineering services, and software licensing via third-party marketplaces. Pricing is quote-based with separate government and commercial sales channels; the company has roughly 30 employees and is scaling to 50-plus following an $18M Series A closed in May 2026.
The company is currently in a scaling phase: it is building a new 2,650-square-foot manufacturing facility in Merrifield, Virginia, creating 31 new jobs, has demonstrated on-orbit 3D reconstruction using Gaussian splatting on Astroscale ADRAS-J imagery, and has executed a CEO transition in December 2025 from founder Philip Hover-Smoot to Josiah Gruber. Customer concentration is structurally high, with the U.S. Space Force and related DoD/NASA entities accounting for substantially all disclosed contract value; commercial partners function primarily as host-platform integrators rather than recurring revenue customers at present.
Scout Space firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Scout Space
- Legal name
- Scout Space, Inc.
- Website
- https://scout.space
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Scout Space develops electro-optical and infrared satellite sensors (Owl, Sparrow) plus onboard autonomy software for space domain awareness, primarily serving the U.S. Space Force, AFWERX, and NASA with hardware sales, hosted-payload integration, and mission-design services.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Scout Space industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Space Domain Awareness Sensors
- NAICS
- Guided Missile and Space Vehicle Manufacturing (336414), Other Guided Missile and Space Vehicle Parts and Auxiliary Equipment Manufacturing (336419), Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical, and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing (334511)
- SIC
- Guided Missiles & Space Vehicles & Parts (3760), Search, Detection, Navagation, Guidance, Aeronautical Sys (3812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Spacecraft Avionics, Flight Computers & Software (IMABACAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Space Payloads & Instruments (Sensors, Comms, EO/IR) (IMABACAD), Space Defense & Missile Warning (BPAIAHAF), Autonomous Flight Control & Guidance Systems (UAS/Urban Air Mobility) (IMABAFAO)
Keywords
Where Scout Space is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Reston
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Scout Space business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- U.S. Government Contracts (TACFI, SBIR, AFWERX): Direct contract revenue from U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Space Force Space Systems Command / Space Safari Office, SpaceWERX, AFWERX, DARPA, and NASA. Includes Tactical Funding Increase (TACFI) Sequential Phase II contracts with cost-share/private match from Scout Space (e.g., $3.8M TACFI for GEO Owl flight unit; $3.2M TACFI for on-board data processing; $1.25M AFWERX SBIR Phase II for conjunction assessment; NASA SBIR Phase I with Slingshot Aerospace).
- Sensor Hardware Sales / Hosted Payload Integration: Sale or integration of Owl and Sparrow sensor payloads onto customer spacecraft (e.g., Blue Origin Blue Ring, Pulse Space satellite, Dawn Aerospace Mk-II Aurora spaceplane) for in-space observation services, RPO-D, and space domain awareness missions.
- Mission Design & Professional Engineering Services: Modeling, simulation, and mission architecture services provided to commercial and government customers to design, test, and validate mission profiles prior to launch.
- Software Tool Distribution (SpaceSight™): Distribution of SpaceSight™ visualization software via Saber Astronautics' Space Application Marketplace (SAM), providing mission planning and imaging simulation to U.S. Space Force operators and commercial users.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Scout Space product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Scout Space designs, manufactures, and operates in-space electro-optical and infrared sensor systems (Owl for long-range LEO/GEO/Lunar space domain awareness and Sparrow for low-SWAP close-range RPO-D missions) along with on-board mission autonomy flight software, edge processing configurations, and a mission design and modeling platform. The integrated offering enables spacecraft to perform on-board sensing, resident space object detection, tracking, characterization, and autonomous decision-making across very-low Earth orbit through geostationary orbit and beyond, for U.S. Space Force, intelligence community, and commercial space operator customers.
Product overview
Scout Space delivers a modular in-space observation platform consisting of two core electro-optical/infrared satellite sensor product lines (the long-range Owl for LEO/GEO/Lunar space domain awareness and the low-SWAP Sparrow for close-range rendezvous and proximity operations in LEO), complemented by Mission Autonomy Software, Edge Processing deployment configurations, and a Mission Design modeling and analytics capability. The platform also includes SpaceSight™, an interactive mission-planning and visualization tool distributed via Saber Astronautics' Space Application Marketplace, which together enable customers to perform on-board sensing, processing, and autonomous decision-making for spacecraft across VLEO, LEO, GEO, and beyond.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- SpaceSight™: Interactive tool by Scout Space designed to enhance the ability of satellite operators to visualize imaging opportunities between spacecraft for inspection, orbit determination, or mission planning. Integrated into Saber Astronautics' Space Application Marketplace (SAM).
Products and services
- Owl Optical Sensor Long-range, independently taskable, gimbaled electro-optical space domain awareness sensor for object detection and orbit determination; designed for missions in LEO, GEO, and Lunar regimes; provides non-resolved and resolved imaging at various form factors for U.S. Space Force, intelligence community, and commercial customers.
- Sparrow Optical Sensor Low-SWAP (Size, Weight, and Power) close-range multi-phenomenology optical system designed for Rendezvous and Proximity Operations - Defensive (RPO-D) in LEO; demonstrated on Dawn Aerospace Mk-II Aurora spaceplane and serves as the platform for Scout's on-orbit 3D reconstruction pipeline.
- Mission Autonomy Software Advanced flight software that enables spacecraft or payloads to autonomously navigate, coordinate, and inspect assets without ground communication; features modular architecture, precise navigation, cooperative multi-satellite coordination, and robust onboard decision-making; developed hand-in-hand with the U.S. Space Force.
- Edge Processing Deployment Comprehensive deployment solution with custom compute configurations and integration support that enables Scout's flight software to operate seamlessly on customer satellites at the edge for on-board perception, detection, and data exploitation.
- Mission Design Modeling and Analytics Platform Modeling and analytics platform that helps clients design, test, and validate missions before launch with simulation and performance analysis covering early concept ideation through detailed mission architecture.
- SpaceSight™ Visualization Tool Interactive mission-planning tool that lets satellite operators specify a real or planned inspector and target with key camera parameters, then renders synthetic images to help operators understand visibility of a target during a planned inspection; distributed via Saber Astronautics' Space Application Marketplace.
- On-orbit 3D Reconstruction Capability 3D reconstruction pipeline based on Gaussian splatting, designed to run on-orbit via Scout's Sparrow sensing platform; converts in-space inspection imagery into lightweight 3D models for downlink, leveraging masks, depth maps, SAM 2, and an internal camera registration tool replacing COLMAP.
Companies that use Scout Space
Customer profileIdeal customer profiles2 records
Scout Space technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration5 records
AI capability9 records
Feature8 records
Scout Space partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators13 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Scout Space competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- LeoLabs: LeoLabs operates a global ground-based radar network for low-Earth orbit object tracking and space situational awareness. It is a direct peer in space domain awareness and resident space object tracking, competing with Scout for SDA, collision avoidance, and STM contracts across commercial and government customers.
- Saber Astronautics: Saber Astronautics provides space situational awareness and mission-management software (Space Cockpit / SAM) used by the U.S. Space Force. It is both an integration partner (Scout's SpaceSight™ is sold through Saber Astronautics' SAM marketplace) and a peer competing for the same USSF SDA software budget.
- Astroscale: Astroscale is an on-orbit servicing and space situational awareness company whose ADRAS-J mission generated imagery that Scout's Sparrow system used to demonstrate on-orbit 3D reconstruction. It is a direct peer in rendezvous and proximity operations and resident space object characterization, serving similar national-security and commercial customers.
- Slingshot Aerospace: Slingshot Aerospace provides AI-enabled space domain awareness, space traffic management, and conjunction assessment software for governments and commercial operators. It is a direct peer: Scout has an active joint NASA SBIR Phase I contract with Slingshot, and the two companies compete for overlapping DoD/USSF SDA and STM programs.
- ExoAnalytic Solutions: ExoAnalytic Solutions provides space domain awareness using a global network of ground-based optical sensors for high-altitude and deep-space object tracking. It is a direct peer in optical SDA, complementing/competing with Scout's on-orbit optical sensor approach for the same U.S. DoD and commercial STM customers.
Broad incumbents
- L3Harris Technologies: L3Harris is a major defense prime with a broad space portfolio including space surveillance, SDA, and resilient satellite payloads. It is a broad incumbent: it competes with Scout in many of the same DoD/USSF SDA and space surveillance programs but offers a much wider product set, including ground-based and space-based SDA.
- Lockheed Martin: Lockheed Martin is a tier-1 defense prime with a large space portfolio spanning satellites, SDA, and missile warning. It is a broad incumbent that competes with Scout for DoD and USSF space programs, with substantially greater resources, capture capacity, and incumbency on legacy programs.
- Northrop Grumman: Northrop Grumman is a large aerospace and defense prime with space systems, SDA, and on-orbit servicing programs. It is a broad incumbent competing for the same USSF and intelligence-community contracts Scout targets, with the scale, certifications, and incumbency advantages of a tier-1 prime.
Emerging players
- Privateer Space: Privateer Space is an emerging space situational awareness and orbital data company building space-tracking and orbital-debris data products. It is an emerging player in the same SDA / orbital intelligence category as Scout, targeting similar commercial and government customers with a more software/data-centric approach.
Others
- LeoStella: LeoStella is a smallsat bus manufacturer and joint venture between Spaceflight Inc. and Thales Alenia Space. It is an adjacent peer/ecosystem participant: it provides the kind of satellite platform onto which Scout's Owl and Sparrow sensors are integrated, and competes indirectly for USSF-hosted payload opportunities.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Scout Space social profiles
Digital presenceScout Space financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Scout Space leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Scout Space subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Scout Space funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds14 records
Investors24 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Scout Space M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Scout Space
What does Scout Space do?
Scout Space designs, manufactures, and operates in-space electro-optical and infrared sensor systems (Owl for long-range LEO/GEO/Lunar space domain awareness and Sparrow for low-SWAP close-range RPO-D missions) along with on-board mission autonomy flight software, edge processing configurations, and a mission design and modeling platform. The integrated offering enables spacecraft to perform on-board sensing, resident space object detection, tracking, characterization, and autonomous decision-making across very-low Earth orbit through geostationary orbit and beyond, for U.S. Space Force, intelligence community, and commercial space operator customers.
Is Scout Space a public or private company?
Scout Space is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Scout Space founded?
Scout Space was founded in 2019. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Scout Space based?
Scout Space is headquartered in Reston, United States, in the North America region.
How does Scout Space make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. U.S. Government Contracts (TACFI, SBIR, AFWERX) is the primary driver. The others are sensor Hardware Sales / Hosted Payload Integration, mission Design & Professional Engineering Services and software Tool Distribution (SpaceSight™).
Who are Scout Space's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are LeoLabs, Saber Astronautics, Astroscale, Slingshot Aerospace and ExoAnalytic Solutions. Broad incumbents are L3Harris Technologies, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman. Privateer Space is listed as an emerging player. LeoStella is listed as an others.
Does Scout Space have an API?
No public API is recorded for Scout Space.
What industry is Scout Space in?
Scout Space's product category is Space Domain Awareness Sensors. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMABACAI, Spacecraft Avionics, Flight Computers & Software, with a secondary code of IMABACAD, Space Payloads & Instruments (Sensors, Comms, EO/IR). Its NAICS code is 336414 and its SIC code is 3760.