Technology

Albedo presents observations of Earth up close and personal from very low Earth orbit

Published

5 months ago

June 15, 2024

IAM

Satellite imagery startup Albedo is preparing for its up-close debut.

The first Albedo satellite will land in orbit next spring, and the corporate goals to upend the business Earth remark industry with its novel approach and ultra-high-resolution cameras.

The satellite, called Clarity, will go to very low Earth orbit (VLEO) as part of the joint SpaceX Transporter-13 mission. This mission is currently scheduled to launch no sooner than February 2025, so this time next yr the primary Albedo satellite ought to be in orbit.

Albedo moreover announced seven customers which has reserved some of its imagery work for Clarity, including satellite image broker SkyFi and German utility Open Grid Europe.

“It’s a tight schedule,” said Albedo CEO Topher Haddad. “This is the primary time we’re publicly publishing a mock-up of the satellite. I feel so much of people probably think we’re a relatively small satellite, however it’s quite a posh robotic system with a big aperture telescope and quite powerful capabilities. Much of this schedule was primarily related to the custom technology we developed to support the high resolution system in VLEO.

The startup is developing a first-of-its-kind spacecraft capable of taking extremely high-resolution images operating in very low Earth orbit – the photographs are so sharp, the corporate says, that they’ve historically been the exclusive domain of U.S. defense and intelligence organizations.

The company says it can give you the chance to sell 10-centimeter-per-pixel images to business and government customers at unprecedentedly low prices due to its unique – and quite large – satellite bus. (An image with a resolution of 10 centimeters signifies that each pixel covers an area of the earth measuring 10 centimeters by 10 centimeters. The largest optical imaging providers today collect images at a resolution of 30 centimeters, which is algorithmically refined to fifteen centimeters.)

Satellites that do collect data at a 10-centimeter resolution typically operate at higher orbital altitudes, equivalent to low Earth orbit, and some estimates put each satellite within the billions of dollars to supply and launch. Low Earth orbit is usually defined because the orbital band at an altitude of about 2,000 kilometers, while VLEO is between 250 and 450 kilometers.

When all is alleged and done, the Albedo satellites shall be the scale of fridges, which is significantly larger than many other business Earth remark satellites that currently operate even further from Earth. Creating such heavy satellites seems counterintuitive – you’d think that to counteract increased atmospheric drag it might be needed to make the satellites as light as possible – but Haddad said in a recent interview that the corporate is capable of counteract that drag by utilizing ultra-efficient electric propulsion and specific decisions design issues, equivalent to mounting solar panels on the spacecraft as a substitute of spreading them across two wings.

“Usually you install (solar panels) because you can generate more power that way, but we had to minimize the cross-sectional area so that the mass and the electric drive act to give us the counteracting drag portion,” Haddad explained.

As the corporate moves toward launching hardware into orbit, Kathryn Tobey has been named its first independent director on the now six-member board. Tobey worked for 34 years at Lockheed Martin, where she eventually became vice chairman of its $3 billion Space, Special Programs business line. (Before founding Albedo, Haddad left his job at Lockheed Martin while working on some of the identical systems). This division handled high-tech national security work, including classified projects – exactly the sort of clientele Albedo goals to achieve on the federal government side.

“He brings both of these superpowers, which I think is quite rare, both a deep technical understanding, not only of satellites, but our unique niche of high-performance imaging satellites, and relationships with national security customers and an understanding of this mission very okay well,” Haddad said.

This article was originally published on : techcrunch.com

Technology

Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal is leaving PhonePe’s board

Published

5 hours ago

November 22, 2024

IAM

Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal has stepped down three-quarters from PhonePe’s board after making an identical move on the e-commerce giant.

Bengaluru-based PhonePe said it has appointed Manish Sabharwal, executive director at recruitment and human resources firm Teamlease, as an independent director and chairman of the audit committee.

Bansal played a key role in Flipkart’s acquisition of PhonePe in 2016 and has since served on the fintech’s board. The Walmart-backed startup, which operates India’s hottest mobile payment app, spun off from Flipkart in 2022 and was valued at $12 billion in funding rounds that raised about $850 million last 12 months.

Bansal still holds about 1% of PhonePe. Neither party explained why they were leaving the board.

“I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Binny Bansal for being one of the first and staunchest supporters of PhonePe,” Sameer Nigam, co-founder and CEO of PhonePe, said in a press release. His lively involvement, strategic advice and private mentoring have profoundly enriched our discussions. We will miss Binny!”

This article was originally published on : techcrunch.com

Technology

The company is currently developing washing machines for humans

Published

12 hours ago

November 22, 2024

IAM

Forget about cold baths. Washing machines for people may soon be a brand new solution.

According to at least one Japanese the oldest newspapersOsaka-based shower head maker Science has developed a cockpit-shaped device that fills with water when a bather sits on a seat in the center and measures an individual’s heart rate and other biological data using sensors to make sure the temperature is good. “It also projects images onto the inside of the transparent cover to make the person feel refreshed,” the power says.

The device, dubbed “Mirai Ningen Sentakuki” (the human washing machine of the longer term), may never go on sale. Indeed, for now the company’s plans are limited to the Osaka trade fair in April, where as much as eight people will have the option to experience a 15-minute “wash and dry” every day after first booking.

Apparently a version for home use is within the works.

This article was originally published on : techcrunch.com

Technology

Zepto raises another $350 million amid retail upheaval in India

Published

19 hours ago

November 21, 2024

IAM

Zepto, snagging $1 billion in 90 days, projects 150% annual growth

Zepto has secured $350 million in latest financing, its third round of financing in six months, because the Indian high-speed trading startup strengthens its position against competitors ahead of a planned public offering next yr.

Indian family offices, high-net-worth individuals and asset manager Motilal Oswal invested in the round, maintaining Zepto’s $5 billion valuation. Motilal co-founder Raamdeo Agrawal, family offices Mankind Pharma, RP-Sanjiv Goenka, Cello, Haldiram’s, Sekhsaria and Kalyan, in addition to stars Amitabh Bachchan and Sachin Tendulkar are amongst those backing the brand new enterprise, which is India’s largest fully national primary round.

The funding push comes as Zepto rushes so as to add Indian investors to its capitalization table, with foreign ownership now exceeding two-thirds. TechCrunch first reported on the brand new round’s deliberations last month. The Mumbai-based startup has raised over $1.35 billion since June.

Fast commerce sales – delivering groceries and other items to customers’ doors in 10 minutes – will exceed $6 billion this yr in India. Morgan Stanley predicts that this market shall be value $42 billion by 2030, accounting for 18.4% of total e-commerce and a pair of.5% of retail sales. These strong growth prospects have forced established players including Flipkart, Myntra and Nykaa to cut back delivery times as they lose touch with specialized delivery apps.

While high-speed commerce has not taken off in many of the world, the model seems to work particularly well in India, where unorganized retail stores are ever-present.

High-speed trading platforms are creating “parallel trading for consumers seeking convenience” in India, Morgan Stanley wrote in a note this month.

Zepto and its rivals – Zomato-owned Blinkit, Swiggy-owned Instamart and Tata-owned BigBasket – currently operate on lower margins than traditional retail, and Morgan Stanley expects market leaders to realize contribution margins of 7-8% and adjusted EBITDA margins to greater than 5% by 2030. (Zepto currently spends about 35 million dollars monthly).

An investor presentation reviewed by TechCrunch shows that Zepto, which handles greater than 7 million total orders every day in greater than 17 cities, is heading in the right direction to realize annual sales of $2 billion. It anticipates 150% growth over the following 12 months, CEO Aadit Palicha told investors in August. The startup plans to go public in India next yr.

However, the rapid growth of high-speed trading has had a devastating impact on the mom-and-pop stores that dot hundreds of Indian cities, towns and villages.

According to the All India Federation of Consumer Products Distributors, about 200,000 local stores closed last yr, with 90,000 in major cities where high-speed trading is more prevalent.

The federation has warned that without regulatory intervention, more local shops shall be vulnerable to closure as fast trading platforms prioritize growth over sustainable practices.

Zepto said it has created job opportunities for tons of of hundreds of gig employees. “From day one, our vision has been to play a small role in nation building, create millions of jobs and offer better services to Indian consumers,” Palicha said in an announcement.

Regulatory challenges arise. Unless an e-commerce company is a majority shareholder of an Indian company or person, current regulations prevent it from operating on a listing model. Fast trading corporations don’t currently follow these rules.

This article was originally published on : techcrunch.com