Pixxel sets up US subsidiary to expand government business
Allyson Jenkins, who previously served as Vice President of Public Sector at Pixxel, has been appointed CEO of Pixxel Federal.
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Space technology startup Pixxel has established a US subsidiary, Pixxel Federal, to expand its presence in the American government market and provide Earth observation, satellite systems and geospatial intelligence solutions to federal agencies.
Allyson Jenkins, who previously served as Vice President of Public Sector at Pixxel, has been appointed CEO of Pixxel Federal, it said in a statement.
The new entity will cater to government requirements across civilian, defence and intelligence sectors, including national security, environmental monitoring and resource exploration.
The company has also appointed three members to the subsidiary's board: retired US Army Lieutenant General Ray Palumbo, former Northrop Grumman executive Patrick M. Antkowiak, and former intelligence executive Frank X. Avila. The appointments bring experience across aerospace, defence, national security and geospatial intelligence.
"The US government is an important market for Pixxel, and establishing Pixxel Federal allows us to build a more dedicated, long-term presence to serve it," said Awais Ahmed, founder and CEO of Pixxel, "Pixxel Federal will bring us closer to our customers, help us respond to their specific mission requirements, and strengthen our ability to deliver critical space capabilities to the US government," he added.
Pixxel has already secured US government engagements through NASA's Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition Program and a Strategic Commercial Enhancements contract from the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). These engagements involve evaluating and integrating commercial hyperspectral data for government applications.
Earlier in Septemner, Pixxel raised $100 million in a Series C funding round co-led by Temasek and Seraphim. The funding took the company's total capital raised to $195 million and will support its expansion across satellite systems, advanced sensing, software and manufacturing.
The sector has gained significant investor attention this year. Earlier in May, Skyroot Aerospace became India's first space-tech unicorn as it raised funding at $1.1 billion valuation.