Capella Space aims to provide global satellite imagery to customers. After interviewing potential beneficiaries, Capella realized it needed to pivot its approach. It will now focus on deploying a small number of satellites in equatorial orbit to address problems like illegal fishing for countries in that region, rather than aiming for a large global satellite constellation. This will allow it to meet customer needs with fewer satellites and a focus on actionable processed imagery rather than raw data.
Making communications land - Are they received and understood as intended? we...
Capella Space Lessons Learned H4D Stanford 2016
1. Capella Space
Reliable & consistent imagery from space
Week 1
Build and sell satellites
that provide global
coverage to customers
around the world
Week 10
Sell information from space with
an initial focus on equatorial
countries
DoD USCG
CommercialOther
many interviews later...
93
18
16
33
26
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
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3. The Team
Payam Banazadeh
M.S Management, Science
& Engineering ‘16
I have designed and built
CubeSats for the past 8
years.
Timon Ruban
M.S. Electrical
Engineering
‘17
I use machine learning
to process satellite
images.
Isaac Matthews
M.S Management,
Science & Engineering
‘17
I am a rocket scientist and
worked at NASA Ames;
expertise in power
conversion.
Will Woods
PhD Electrical
Engineering
‘16
My PhD expertise is in
radar and remote
sensing.
Jose Ignacio del Villar
M.S Management,
Science & Engineering
‘16
I use my experience in
finance and
entrepreneurship to build
great products.
4. Week #
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Emotional Journey
USCG Office of Law
Enforcement is
possible beneficiary
Pivot to stopping illegal
maritime activities in
equatorial countries
Surprise ending!
Tests of satellite
payload in
preparation for
launch ahead
Search for the right
beneficiary - Navy,
Oil & Gas, Insurances
and more
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
5. We came
into the class
with a technology and
a preconceived
solution to what we
thought was a big
problem
We are
building
satellites!
Redacted
6. We thought this was a huge problem and needed to be fixed …
50% night
coverage
50% cloud
coverage
75% invisible
to optical
imagery
Redacted Redacted
RedactedRedacted Redacted
9. • Vendor coordination
• Integration and testing
• UI design and
implementation
• Sponsors (military and
commercial)
• Satellite structure
providers
• Satellite component
providers
• Orbital communication
providers
• Satellite launch providers
• US Military
• US Border Control
• Insurance companies
• Land/resource managers
• Hedge fund managers
• Infrastructure managers
• Power companies
• Telecoms
• Oil companies
• Solar/wind power
companies
• Foreign space agencies
• Foreign governments
• Provide global EO radar
data 10-100 times
cheaper than current
providers
• Revisit global targets
many times per day
(currently impossible)
• Global radar coverage with 15 minute revisit achieved
• Widespread commercial adoption for resource allocation
• Deploy 1st satellite for
single customer
• Deploy additional
satellites to serve
multiple customers
• Final constellation,
customers globally
• Ground/airborne demonstration: 100k
• First satellite: $6 million
• Subsequent satellites: $3 million each
• Final constellation: $300 million total
• Funding to perform first
demonstration
• Letters of intents to
prove market viability
• Oracle for US defense
priorities
• Airborne radar testing
platforms
• US military for
confirmation of target
classification
Beneficiaries
Mission AchievementMission Budget/Costs
Buy-In/Support
Deployment
Key Activities
Key Resources
Key Partners Value Proposition
Redacted Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
10. • Vendor coordination
• Integration and testing
• UI design and
implementation
• Sponsors (military and
commercial)
• Satellite structure
providers
• Satellite component
providers
• Orbital communication
providers
• Satellite launch providers
Everyone
Global
coverage
with low
revisit rate
>1 hour
Sell Satellites
• Deploy 1st satellite for
single customer
• Deploy additional
satellites to serve
multiple customers
• Final constellation,
customers globally
• Ground/airborne demonstration: 100k
• First satellite: $6 million
• Subsequent satellites: $3 million each
• Final constellation: $300 million total
• Funding to perform first
demonstration
• Letters of intents to
prove market viability
• Oracle for US defense
priorities
• Airborne radar testing
platforms
• US military for
confirmation of target
classification
Beneficiaries
Mission AchievementMission Budget/Costs
Buy-In/Support
Deployment
Key Activities
Key Resources
Key Partners Value Proposition
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
11. We thought:
With so many
applications, we
will have customers
around the world in
no time!
Redacted
12. But then we started
getting out of the building
to test our
hypotheses
14. Big Idea - Week 1
Stop pitching,
start listening!
15. So our journey from one
Beneficiary
to the next began...
16. US Navy 7th Fleet
We were sure that the Navy 7th Fleet would
fight to get our technology
We were not on their priority list
We thought In reality
Week 1 & 2
Phone Interviews
Redacted
Redacted
17. USCG Search & Rescue
Our technology can solve the problem of
locating ships and resource allocation in
Search & Rescue missions
The problem is not big enough in $ to
justify a satellite constellation
We thought In reality
Week 3 & 4
Visited on site
“The real question is: what is out
there?”
LCDR Nathaniel Johnson
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
RedactedRedacted
Redact
ed
18. Port Authorities
Our technology can help global port
authorities monitor and identify ships
coming into port, and can improve port
traffic management.
They have very sophisticated knowledge of
what happens in the port and do not need
our technology
We thought In reality
Week 5
Cold called
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Re
da
cte
d
19. We had many leads, but no big problem that
would justify building and launching a global
constellation of satellites.
Redacted
Redacted
20. • Construction of
payload for testing
• Development of
image analysis
algorithms
• Construction of
satellite under
required constraints
• Data Analytics
providers (Orbital
Insight, Omni Earth,
etc)
• Sponsors (military
and commercial)
• Satellite structure
providers
• Satellite component
providers
• Orbital
communication
providers
• Satellite launch
providers
• Acquire government customers in Equatorial States
• Grow commercial interest in Capella’s SAR data
• Adoption of Capella technology by the DHS and other
government departments
• - USCG: successful drug interdiction and S&R using Capella
• Deploy 1 to 3
satellites and sell
the images by
September 2017.
• Finish the
deployment of 40
satellites by 2020.
• Summer ground demonstration: $100k
• First satellite: $6 million (including operations)
• Subsequent satellites: $3 million each
• Final constellation: $150 million total over 3 years
• Funding for summer
2016 payload test
• Government
advocacy for our
tech: DHS
• Contacts in the State
Dept., Equatorial
state leaders.
Beneficiaries
Mission AchievementMission Budget/Costs
Buy-In/Support
Deployment
Key Activities
Key Resources
Key Partners Value Proposition
USCG
- Stop drugs from
entering US ports
- Reduce the cost of
drug interdiction, SAR
NGA
Provide actionable
intelligence to other
agencies/services
Commercial
Satellite Imagery
Resellers: they can offer
better and more diverse
products
Illegal fishing:
tracking suspicious
non-AIS ships at sea.
Better law
enforcement.
Government sector
driving demand
(Indonesia, Nigeria,
Ecuador, Colombia)
Coast Guard Deputy
Commandant for
Operations (CG-DCO)
Commercial
-Satellite imagery
resellers
- Illegal fishing in
Indonesia, Indian
Ocean
- Oil bunkering in
Nigeria
- Piracy in E Africa
USCG
Law Enforcement DO
Information Watch
Officer
NGA
Intelligence Analysts
Services in the DoD??
SOCOM
???
Beneficiaries
Before After
US Military
US Border Control
Insurance companies
Land/resource managers
Hedge fund managers
Infrastructure managers
Power companies
Telecoms
Oil companies
Solar/wind power companies
Foreign space agencies
Foreign governments
Redacted
Redacted
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d
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
22. What were we offering?
Satellite constellation
of 40 satellites
Global coverage with
a revisit rate of less
than 1 hour
Solve problems for
everyone
Redacted
23. Main learnings - Week 5-8
For the DoD to buy from us, we need to
prove commercial viability
The USCG has a clear need and don’t
have the capabilities to patrol
everywhere
“We are subject to the tyranny
of distance”
CDR Steve Schultz
“We’re thinking about it, we’ll buy the data
when you have the satellites up”
NGA
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redact
ed
Redact
ed
28. But their problem is not big enough...
Are we thinking about this in
the correct way?
We banged our heads against
the wall and we needed to find
something that works.
31. Focus on Equatorial orbit
What changed?
Our initial applications
involve ships at sea
We can achieve revisit rates
of less than 1 hour with a
fraction of the satellites (40 -
> 3 satellites!)
Countries like Indonesia,
Nigeria, Colombia and
Ecuador have many
problems at sea that we can
help with
“The sea is vast”
CAPT Edward Sandlin
Redacted
Redacted
33. • Construction of
payload for testing
• Development of
image analysis
algorithms
• Construction of
satellite under
required constraints
• Data Analytics
providers (Orbital
Insight, Omni Earth,
etc)
• Sponsors (military
and commercial)
• Satellite structure
providers
• Satellite component
providers
• Orbital
communication
providers
• Satellite launch
providers
• Acquire government customers in Equatorial States
• Grow commercial interest in Capella’s SAR data
• Adoption of Capella technology by the DHS and other
government departments
• - USCG: successful drug interdiction and S&R using Capella
• Deploy 1 to 3
satellites and sell
the images by
September 2017.
• Finish the
deployment of 40
satellites by 2020.
• Summer ground demonstration: $100k
• First satellite: $6 million (including operations)
• Subsequent satellites: $3 million each
• Final constellation: $150 million total over 3 years
• Funding for summer
2016 payload test
• Government
advocacy for our
tech: DHS
• Contacts in the State
Dept., Equatorial
state leaders.
Beneficiaries
Mission AchievementMission Budget/Costs
Buy-In/Support
Deployment
Key Activities
Key Resources
Key Partners Value Proposition
USCG
- Stop drugs from
entering US ports
- Reduce the cost of
drug interdiction, SAR
NGA
Provide actionable
intelligence to other
agencies/services
Commercial
Satellite Imagery
Resellers: they can offer
better and more diverse
products
Illegal fishing:
tracking suspicious
non-AIS ships at sea.
Better law
enforcement.
Government sector
driving demand
(Indonesia, Nigeria,
Ecuador, Colombia)
Coast Guard Deputy
Commandant for
Operations (CG-DCO)
Commercial
-Satellite imagery
resellers
- Illegal fishing in
Indonesia, Indian
Ocean
- Oil bunkering in
Nigeria
- Piracy in E Africa
USCG
Law Enforcement DO
Information Watch
Officer
NGA
Intelligence Analysts
Services in the DoD??
SOCOM
Images are the product
Decision Makers want
images that provide
actionable insights
(processed images)
SAR data we are offering
does not exist: we are able
to meet customer needs
with only a few satellites
Satellites are the product
Users want to do their own
image analysis
(raw images)
We should start by offering
users processed images
Value Proposition
Before After
Redacted
Redacted Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
34. The changes are reflected in our
Mission Achievement
objectives
35. • Construction of
payload for testing
• Development of
image analysis
algorithms
• Construction of
satellite under
required constraints
• Data Analytics
providers (Orbital
Insight, Omni Earth,
etc)
• Sponsors (military
and commercial)
• Satellite structure
providers
• Satellite component
providers
• Orbital
communication
providers
• Satellite launch
providers
• Acquire government customers in Equatorial States
• Grow commercial interest in Capella’s SAR data
• Adoption of Capella technology by the DHS and other
government departments
• - USCG: successful drug interdiction and S&R using Capella
• Deploy 1 to 3
satellites and sell
the images by
September 2017.
• Finish the
deployment of 40
satellites by 2020.
• Summer ground demonstration: $100k
• First satellite: $6 million (including operations)
• Subsequent satellites: $3 million each
• Final constellation: $150 million total over 3 years
• Funding for summer
2016 payload test
• Government
advocacy for our
tech: DHS
• Contacts in the State
Dept., Equatorial
state leaders.
Beneficiaries
Mission AchievementMission Budget/Costs
Buy-In/Support
Deployment
Key Activities
Key Resources
Key Partners Value Proposition
USCG
- Stop drugs from
entering US ports
- Reduce the cost of
drug interdiction, SAR
NGA
Provide actionable
intelligence to other
agencies/services
Commercial
Satellite Imagery
Resellers: they can offer
better and more diverse
products
Illegal fishing:
tracking suspicious
non-AIS ships at sea.
Better law
enforcement.
Government sector
driving demand
(Indonesia, Nigeria,
Ecuador, Colombia)
Coast Guard Deputy
Commandant for
Operations (CG-DCO)
Commercial
-Satellite imagery
resellers
- Illegal fishing in
Indonesia, Indian
Ocean
- Oil bunkering in
Nigeria
- Piracy in E Africa
USCG
Law Enforcement DO
Information Watch
Officer
NGA
Intelligence Analysts
Services in the DoD??
SOCOM
USCG use imagery
to stop drug
smuggling
Customer in the
equatorial region
uses imagery to
combat illegal
fishing/piracy
Global radar
coverage &
widespread
commercial
adoption
Mission Achievement
Before After
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
36. Current thinking
To gather data we need
satellites in orbit
To provide those insights
we need data
We will provide our
analysts and decision
makers with actionable
insights
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
37. • Construction of
payload for testing
• Development of
image analysis
algorithms
• Construction of
satellite under
required constraints
• Data Analytics
providers (Orbital
Insight, Omni Earth,
etc)
• Sponsors (military
and commercial)
• Satellite structure
providers
• Satellite component
providers
• Orbital
communication
providers
• Satellite launch
providers
• Acquire government customers in Equatorial States
• Grow commercial interest in Capella’s SAR data
• Adoption of Capella technology by the DHS and other
government departments
• - USCG: successful drug interdiction and S&R using Capella
• Deploy 1 to 3
satellites and sell
the images by
September 2017.
• Finish the
deployment of 40
satellites by 2020.
• Summer ground demonstration: $100k
• First satellite: $6 million (including operations)
• Subsequent satellites: $3 million each
• Final constellation: $150 million total over 3 years
• Funding for summer
2016 payload test
• Government
advocacy for our
tech: DHS
• Contacts in the State
Dept., Equatorial
state leaders.
Beneficiaries
Mission AchievementMission Budget/Costs
Buy-In/Support
Deployment
Key Activities
Key Resources
Key Partners Value Proposition
USCG
- Stop drugs from
entering US ports
- Reduce the cost of
drug interdiction, SAR
NGA
Provide actionable
intelligence to other
agencies/services
Commercial
Satellite Imagery
Resellers: they can offer
better and more diverse
products
Illegal fishing:
tracking suspicious
non-AIS ships at sea.
Better law
enforcement.
Government sector
driving demand
(Indonesia, Nigeria,
Ecuador, Colombia)
Coast Guard Deputy
Commandant for
Operations (CG-DCO)
Commercial
-Satellite imagery
resellers
- Illegal fishing in
Indonesia, Indian
Ocean
- Oil bunkering in
Nigeria
- Piracy in E Africa
USCG
Law Enforcement DO
Information Watch
Officer
NGA
Intelligence Analysts
Services in the DoD??
SOCOM
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
RedactedRedacted
38. Big Changes
Beneficiaries
Value
Proposition
Mission
Achievement
Week 1 Week 10
Everyone
Global Coverage
Sell Satellites
USCG - Law Enforcement
Equatorial Region Coverage
Use Insights from Images
Equatorial countries (Indonesia,
Nigeria, etc.)
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
39.
40. IRL 1
IRL 4
IRL 3
IRL 2
IRL 7
IRL 6
IRL 5
IRL 8
IRL 9
First pass on MMC w/Problem Sponsor
Complete ecosystem analysis petal diagram
Validate mission achievement (Right side of canvas)
Problem validated through initial interviews
Prototype low-fidelity Minimum Viable Product
Value proposition/mission fit (Value Proposition Canvas)
Validate resource strategy (Left side of canvas)
Prototype high-fidelity Minimum Viable Product
Establish mission achievement metrics that matterTeam Assessment: IRL 9
42. Capella Current Status
Design
Up to today
Feasibility design
completed, market
assessment, satellite
design underway,
customer
development
Angel Investment
Closed - $200k
Build, integrate, and
test the payload,
demonstrate the
product, sign LOIs
Seed
Aug/Sept ’16
$3M - $5M
Procure satellite
hardware, expand the
team, secure launch
vehicle, launch first
2 satellites
Series A
June ’17
$10M
Launch additional 9
satellites in polar
constellations,
expand analytics
platform
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
43. Roadmap to launch
Demo Setup Design Freeze
*Procure demo equipment
*Finalize experiment setup
*Integrate payload
on ground bench
*Moving car
experiment
*Develop analytics
demo for use case 1
*Demo analytics
with acquired data
*V1 design
freeze
*Procure
satellite
components
*First delivery of
satellite flight units
*Engineering
models delivered
$200k $5M
Payload Demo Procure & Integrate
May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar
*Integration
completed
April May June July Aug Sept
*Ground test
completed
*Flight unit
delivery to LV
*Launch of Capella 1 and
Capella 2 into orbit
Integrate Test & Delivery
$10M
Total 40-80M additional capital requirement
Redacted
Redacted
Redacted
Redacte
d
44. Thank you!
H4D-teaching team:
Steve, Jackie, Joe, Pete, Tom
H4D Course Assistants:
Kim, John, Chris, Ben, Konstantine
Our Course Mentors:
Garrett, Bucky, Cory Malstrom, Chris Conley, Karen Diener,
Beal AFB personnel, and all of our military liaisons
US Coast Guard - 11th District
Dan Pickles, Nate Johnson, and all the people there that
helped us along the way
Redacted
Redacted