Xona Space Systems readies six satellites to sell precision that free GPS lacks
Xona Space Systems is preparing the first precision commercial alternative to GPS, with six of its satellites scheduled to launch on a SpaceX rocket in October 2026. Founded in 2019 by five engineers from Stanford University, the Burlingame, California startup has raised just over $300 million from venture investors, including $20 million from the U.S. Space Force, toward a planned 258-satellite constellation called Pulsar.
Chief executive Brian Manning first dismissed the idea of competing with a free government signal, then concluded that the real market was the billions of devices sold each year, not the signal itself. Every technical choice follows from that goal: signals that existing GPS receivers can read after a software change, centimeter-level precision, and full coverage of the United States, Europe, Japan and South Korea targeted by 2028.
Source: TechCrunch Startups · October 9, 2026