SAN FRANCISCO – CesiumAstro, an Austin-based startup specializing in phased array technology, has acquired TXMission, a U.K. company that develops software-defined radios and modems. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
“This enables us to deliver complete end-to-end software-defined phased array systems for our customers that’s all in-house,” Shey Sabripour, CesiumAstro founder and CEO, told SpaceNews. “We can serve more customers as a one-stop shop.”
The acquisition also extends CesiumAstro’s presence into new markets. While CesiumAstro has focused primarly on supplying active phased array communications technology for satellites and aircraft, TXMission (pronounced Trans-mission) offers modems and software-defined radios for drones, high-altitude platforms, satellites, aircraft and ground stations, Sabripour said.
In addition, the acquisition extends CesiumAstro’s “reach into the U.K. and to the rest of the continent,” Sabripour said.
London-based CesiumAstro UK Ltd. was incorporated in August. The British company currently has about five employees, but Sabripour expects the staff to double by the end of the year.
“This is a big deal for us,” Sabripour said. “Even though it seems like [TXMission is] a small company, they have impressive backgrounds in digital signal processing software and hardware. It’s a nucleus that I want to attract talent around.”
Sabripour founded CesiumAstro in 2017 after spending nearly 24 years at Lockheed Martin. TXMission was established in 2018.
CesiumAstro, with offices in Austin, Broomfield, Colorado, and El Segundo, California, has expanded rapidly as it attracted customers, including Saturn Satellite Networks, and investors.
“We are delighted to join CesiumAstro,” Gianni Nannetti, TXMission CEO and vice president of engineering, said in a statement. “This is a mutually beneficial opportunity allowing us to grow our team, expand our capabilities, and continue building high-performance communications systems for our customers.”
