The Program Hosts Its 14th Accelerator
Space-Based Joint Spectrum
The Catalyst Accelerator, powered by the Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate (AFRL/RV), exists to empower nontraditional technology companies to accelerate their involvement in the national defense ecosystem by providing connections, mentorship, and business development in a collaborative setting for a lasting national impact. The evolving nature of space and electromagnetic warfare necessitates the development and integration of advanced technologies to ensure mission success and strategic superiority. The U.S. Space Force and U.S. Army are particularly interested in the application of AI and ML to automate tasks, improve decision support, and develop self-adapting systems capable of responding to dynamic threats in real-time. Additionally, there is a pressing need for mobile, rapidly deployable EW systems that can counter increasingly sophisticated adversarial capabilities in both Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and Geosynchronous Orbit (GEO) environments.
The Space-Based Joint Spectrum (#CASJS) cohort is the first Accelerator in partnership with the Army Research Laboratory (ARL). Capt Skyler Hart, United States Space Force, AFRL/RVSX, and the Government Lead for the Catalyst Accelerator, shared his thoughts on Pitch Days for the #CASJS cohort: "Our Pitch Days for the EW cohort were outstanding. It was really exciting to see all the innovative technologies that small businesses are developing. Our stakeholders are even more excited since these companies are getting after one of USSPACECOM's top priorities in Electromagnetic Warfare. I look forward to seeing how they progress through the Accelerator in the spring."
The #CASJS cohort will meet two weeks per month beginning 28 January and ending 25 April, 2025. During the program, each company will collaborate with subject matter experts, engage with Government and Commercial Navigators, and complete an intensive customer discovery process. The cohort experience will culminate in a Demo Day on April 24th, where companies will pitch their technology to government, industry partners, and investors assesing the potential of the cohort company technologies.
The Catalyst Accelerator team, with technical advisement from government, industry, and academia, underwent a rigorous selection process in order to carefully choose the companies for the #CASJS cohort. The following startups were chosen based on their demonstrated potential and innovative capability solutions:
Authentrics.ai (Knoxville, Tennessee) Authentrics.ai provides a patent-pending solution that works with existing AI/ML pipelines to directly measure, control, and explain AI through direct analysis of the neural-network and transformers enabling near real-time model health status, result attribution to release version, ability to correct/update past trainings without full-retraining, and perform meta-tuning and sensitivity analysis. These key functions greatly increase the ROI by bringing and keeping AI/ML systems operational faster and provide the resilience required in key/critical applications.
Geist Robotics Inc. (Seattle, Washington) Geist Robotics is on a mission to democratize the protection afforded by electronic warfare. Geist specializes in low cost, highly portable air defense by non-kinetic means, providing vital protection against drones and airborne threats in locations where air defense is otherwise unavailable. The innovative EW solutions developed by Geist are further enabled by their AI planning software, providing an intuitive interface that simplifies the complexities of EW planning for effective deployment.
Origami Space Development, Inc. (Berthoud, Colorado) At Origami Space, we fold big capability into small satellites. Leveraging generative design and machine learning, our deployable RF and LiDAR architectures set new standards in satellite communications and intelligence. Origami Space is developing smart, agile, and resilient satellite systems, paving the way for expanded reach and precision, critical for commercial applications and national security.
Orion Edge Group (Denver, Colorado) Orion Edge Group is dedicated to advancing innovative and effective navigation warfare solutions for the warfighter. Our vision enables precise and advanced navigation warfare operations at the tactical level to help to ensure electromagnetic spectrum dominance across multiple domains. Orion Edge provides low cost, low power, and low probability of detection solutions that help to protect the warfighter and deconflict interference across the navigation spectrum. With novel radio frequency techniques and mission engineering expertise, Orion Edge offers a proliferated and modular EW solution across many different use cases.
Pulsar Space Systems LLC (Louisville, Colorado) At Pulsar Space Systems, we measure the ionosphere's response to solar inputs. We envision ubiquitous measurements of the ionosphere in multiple orbital regimes with in-situ plasma and neutral density instruments, addressing stated DoD and NASA observation gaps.
Spin Drift Technologies (Midvale, Idaho) Spin Drift Technologies is enabling low probability of intercept / low probability of detection communications by pioneering data transfer outside of traditional radio, microwave, or infrared spectrums to meet the demands of the modern electronic warfare environments. Ability to transfer updated battle plans, intelligence documents, weather reports, operation manuals, targeting data, and scientific data in fully denied environments.
The Catalyst Accelerator is proud to play a pivotal role in driving technological advancements and fostering innovation in the space sector. By bringing together talented startups and industry leaders, the Accelerator aims to fast-track the development and deployment of technologies that will shape the future of the space industry.
About Catalyst Accelerator
The Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate and United States Space Force's Catalyst Accelerator is a NewSpace-focused defense and national security industry accelerator, headquartered on the Catalyst Campus for Technology and Innovation (CCTI) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. CCTI is a collaborative ecosystem where industry, small business, entrepreneurs, startups, government, academia, and investors intersect with Colorado's aerospace and defense industry to create community, spark innovation, and stimulate business growth. The Catalyst Accelerator is a collaborative program hosted by Catalyst Campus for Technology and Innovation (CCTI, a Colorado 501(c)3) in partnership with the United States Space Force, and the Air Force Research Laboratory to provide a robust, mentor-driven curriculum for accelerator teams.
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CONTACT: Shae Thomas
Catalyst Accelerator Program Manager
719-465-7556
