The American company Firefly Aerospace has officially announced the purchase of the startup Space-ng, which specializes in the development of navigation systems and autonomous guidance based on artificial intelligence. This strategic agreement aims to radically strengthen the capabilities of autonomous control of the company's spacecraft during complex missions to the Moon, Mars and deep space. The parties decided not to disclose the financial terms of the transaction.
Software from Space-ng has already undergone a critical baptism of fire: it was used during the landing of the Blue Ghost Mission lunar module 1. The AI visual navigation system helped the lander to independently identify dangerous areas of the terrain and adjust the trajectory of the descent just before precise contact with the surface of the moon.
Now the technologies of the purchased company will be integrated into two main products of Firefly:
Blue Ghost Lunar Landers: The system will provide safe autonomous landing on difficult terrain without the help of GPS. Elytra orbital tugs: AI algorithms will control approach maneuvers, docking, maintenance of satellites and space monitoring.
With the deal, Firefly Aerospace gets a full stack of intelligent solutions: Optical navigation: Algorithms of orientation in space by visual landmarks, replacing satellite navigation systems (GNSS) in distant missions. High-precision cameras: Specialized hardware for shooting space objects and planetary surfaces. AI computing platforms: On-board iron, capable of processing arrays of visual data in real time directly on board the device.
As part of the company's full integration, its co-founder and CEO Ethan Rabley is officially moving to Firefly Aerospace, where he will hold the position of chief software engineer. Under his leadership, the team will adapt the technologies for the next high-profile contracts, such as: program is NASA CLPS (Blue Ghost missions 2, 3 and 4) – to deliver cargo to the moon; NASA MoonFall project – де орбітальний апарат Elytra має доставити автономні дрони на південний полюс супутника; проєкт Sinequone від DIU (Агентство оборонних інновацій США) – for carrying out military operations to inspect satellites.