AST SpaceMobile, tired of waiting for other companies to launch its satellites, is getting into the rocket business.
The company is sourcing engine technology from Firefly Aerospace as it builds its own launch capability. The move follows delays in getting its satellites into orbit. "We are done waiting" on rocket providers, CEO Abel Avellan said.
The context is a race with Starlink Mobile, the rival service that AST is trying to catch up with. AST builds satellites meant to connect to ordinary phones, and a constellation only works once the satellites are in orbit. Every slipped launch slot pushes back service.
Starlink's parent, SpaceX, has long avoided that problem by building the rockets that carry its own satellites. It controls the launch calendar, and AST does not. Seen that way, AST's pivot is less a new strategy than a copy of the rival's most durable advantage.
Copying it is another matter. Engines are one piece of a rocket, and buying that technology from Firefly shortens the road without ending it. AST would still need a full vehicle around those engines, and a rocket that has not yet flown cannot fix a launch backlog today. The open question is whether in-house launch removes AST's bottleneck or simply swaps an outside schedule for an internal one.