SAIC backs satellite bus design startup
Gettyimages.com / Anton Petrus
By
Ross Wilkers
Science Applications International Corp.'s venture arm is undertaking this investment as part of its push to find more dual-use technologies that work in commercial and national security environments.
Science Applications International Corp. has invested in Proteus Space, a startup developer of artificial intelligence tools that work to introduce automation into the satellite design process.
The companies will work together on enhancing Mercury, Proteus’ flagship product that autonomously designs custom satellite buses that are tailored to specific payloads. Terms of the investment announced Tuesday were not disclosed.
Proteus designed Mercury to minimize the amount of errors and rework in satellite design, a line of work that requires precision and accuracy. SAIC sees the tool as having potential to “to develop high-fidelity, autonomous digital modeling capabilities” for custom-built satellites.
“Our investment in Proteus Space is driven by their visionary technology, which enhances SAIC’s impactful digital engineering services,” Lauren Knausenberger, SAIC chief innovation officer and a former Air Force chief information officer, said in a release. “We have entered into this innovative partnership to expedite the development of next-generation space solutions for our government clients and the commercial sector.”
SAIC is making this investment out of its ventures organization, for which Knausenberger leads as co-managing director along with Michael Hauser.
The SAIC Ventures arm invests in technology startups whose creations have the potential for dual-use in commercial and national security environments. Orca Security and Xage Security are the other two companies in SAIC Ventures’ portfolio, which also backed Morpheus Data in the spring of 2023 before SAIC acquired the remainder of that business.
Los Angeles-headquartered Proteus started in 2021 and describes its core focus areas as also including additive manufacturing, payload integration, digital twins and de-orbit planning.
“This partnership will accelerate our ability to deliver Mercury to a broader range of government customers, offering a transformative solution for satellite design and production,” added David Kervin, co-founder and chief executive of Proteus.