Satellogic is an Earth observation company from Argentina that has spent the past decade trying to prove that low-cost optical imaging can scale into a viable business. Founded in 2010, it is one of the earliest examples of the “new space” EO model: build small satellites cheaply, launch them in clusters, and flood the market with daily imagery at a fraction of what Maxar or Airbus charge.

The fleet is made up of sub-100 kg satellites equipped with multispectral and hyperspectral sensors. Dozens have been launched on rideshare missions, mainly with SpaceX. The satellites are placed in sun-synchronous orbit to build out a daily global coverage capability. Satellogic’s stated goal is to operate a constellation of 200 satellites, but the number in orbit today is far smaller, and the cadence toward that target has been slower than promised.

The company went public in 2022 through a SPAC, which gave it an early cash injection but also put it under the same pressure that crushed most space SPACs. Its stock has languished, reflecting the gap between marketing and actual revenue. Customers include governments and commercial users, but most sales are still project-based rather than recurring contracts. Satellogic has tried to secure deals with sovereign customers to operate imagery infrastructure as a service, an approach that mirrors what E-Space is pitching in LEO communications.

Technically, the imagery quality is competitive at its price point. The satellites deliver sub-meter resolution optical data, and the hyperspectral payloads are differentiated in the market. The challenge has been turning that into stable, predictable revenue. The EO market is crowded with incumbents like Maxar and Airbus on the high-end and newer entrants like Planet on the daily-coverage tier. Satellogic has positioned itself in between, but scale is essential and that requires financing the next hundred satellites.

The blunt reality is that Satellogic has not yet escaped the gravity of being a mid-tier EO startup. It has a working constellation, technical credibility, and paying customers, but it does not have the financial stability or customer base of its larger rivals. Without significant government anchor contracts or a major partnership, it risks being overtaken in a market that rewards either scale or specialization. It is not a failure, but it is not yet the global mapping utility it set out to be.