{"id":43680,"date":"2025-10-23T19:02:28","date_gmt":"2025-10-23T11:02:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/california-startup-to-demonstrate-space-weapon-on-its-own-dime\/"},"modified":"2025-10-23T19:02:28","modified_gmt":"2025-10-23T11:02:28","slug":"california-startup-to-demonstrate-space-weapon-on-its-own-dime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/california-startup-to-demonstrate-space-weapon-on-its-own-dime\/","title":{"rendered":"California startup to demonstrate space weapon on its own dime"},"content":{"rendered":"

Defense contractors are in full sales mode to win a piece of a potentially trillion-dollar pie for development of the Trump administration\u2019s proposed Golden Dome missile shield.<\/p>\n

CEOs are touting their companies\u2019 ability to rapidly spool up satellite, sensor, and rocket production. Publicly, they all agree with the assertion of Pentagon officials that US industry already possesses the technologies required to make a homeland missile defense system work.<\/p>\n

The challenge, they say, is tying all of it together under the umbrella of a sophisticated command and control network. Sensors must be able to detect and track missile threats, and that information must rapidly get to weapons that can shoot them down. Gen. Chance Saltzman, the Space Force\u2019s top commander, likes to call Golden Dome a \u201csystems of systems.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of these systems stands apart. It\u2019s the element that was most controversial when former President Ronald Reagan announced the Strategic Defense Initiative or \u201cStar Wars\u201d program, a concept similar to Golden Dome that fizzled after the end of the Cold War.<\/p>\n

Like the Star Wars concept 40 years ago, Golden Dome\u2019s pi\u00e8ce de r\u00e9sistance will be a fleet of space-based interceptors loitering in orbit a few hundred miles overhead, ready to shoot down missiles shortly after they are launched. Pentagon officials haven\u2019t disclosed the exact number of interceptors required to fulfill Golden Dome\u2019s mission of defending the United States against a volley of incoming missiles. It will probably be in the thousands.<\/p>\n

Skin in the game<\/h2>\n

Last month, the Defense Department released a request for prototype proposals for space-based interceptors (SBIs). The Space Force said it plans to sign agreements with multiple companies to develop and demonstrate SBIs and compete for prizes. This is an unusual procurement strategy for the Pentagon, requiring contractors to spend their own money on building and launching the SBIs into space, with the hope of eventually winning a lucrative production contract.<\/p>\n

Apex is one of the companies posturing for an SBI contract. Based in Los Angeles, Apex is one of several US startups looking to manufacture satellites faster and cheaper than traditional aerospace contractors. The company\u2019s vision is to rapidly churn out satellite buses, essentially the spacecraft\u2019s chassis, to be integrated with a customer\u2019s payloads. So far, Apex has raised more than $500 million from investors and launched its first satellite in 2024, just two years after the company\u2019s founding. Apex won a $46 million contract from the Space Force in February to supply the military with an unspecified number of satellites through 2032.<\/p>\n

,<\/p>\n

Apex says its satellites can perform a range of missions: remote sensing and Earth observation, communications, AI-powered edge processing, and technology demos. The largest platform in Apex\u2019s portfolio can accommodate payloads of up to 500 kilograms (1,100 pounds), with enough power to support direct-to-cell connectivity and government surveillance missions.<\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

A look inside Apex\u2019s satellite factory in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

Credit:
\n Apex<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n

Now, Apex wants to show its satellite design can serve as an orbiting weapons platform.<\/p>\n

\u201cApex is built to move fast, and that is exactly what America and our allies need to ensure we win the New Space Race,\u201d Ian Cinnamon, the company\u2019s co-founder and CEO, said in a statement Wednesday. \u201cIn under a year, we are launching the host platform for space-based interceptors, called an Orbital Magazine, which will deploy multiple prototype missile interceptors in orbit.\u201d<\/p>\n

The demonstration mission is called Project Shadow. It\u2019s intended to \u201cprove that an operational SBI constellation can be deployed in the timeframe our country needs,\u201d Cinnamon said. \u201cApex isn\u2019t waiting for handouts or contracts; we are developing this Orbital Magazine technology on our own dime and moving incredibly fast.\u201d<\/p>\n

Star Wars redux<\/h2>\n

Just one week into his second term in the White House, President Donald Trump signed an executive order for what would soon be named Golden Dome, citing an imperative to defend the United States against ballistic missiles and emerging weapons systems like hypersonic glide vehicles and drones.<\/p>\n

The Trump administration said in May that the defense shield would cost $175 billion over the next three years. Most analysts peg the long-term cost much higher, but no one really knows. The Pentagon hasn\u2019t released a detailed architecture for what Golden Dome will actually entail, and the uncertainty has driven independent cost estimates ranging from $500 billion to more than $3 trillion.<\/p>\n

Golden Dome\u2019s unknown costs, lack of definition, and its unpredictable effect on strategic stability have garnered criticism from Democratic lawmakers.<\/p>\n

But unlike the reaction to the Reagan-era Star Wars program, there\u2019s not much pushback on Golden Dome\u2019s technical viability.<\/p>\n

,<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of the pieces that are required to make it viable exist. They\u2019re out there,\u201d Cinnamon told Ars. \u201cWe have satellites, we have boosters, we have seekers, we have fire control, we have IFTUs (in-flight target updates), we have inter-satellite links. The key is, all those pieces need to talk to each other and actually come together, and that integration is really, really difficult. The second key is, in order for it to be viable, you need enough of them in space to actually have the impact that you need.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

This frame from an Apex animation shows a space-based interceptor deploying from an Orbital Magazine.<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n

Apex says its Project Shadow demo is scheduled to launch in June 2026. Once in orbit, the Project Shadow spacecraft will deploy two interceptors, each firing a high-thrust solid rocket motor from a third-party supplier. \u201cThe Orbital Magazine will prove its ability to environmentally control the interceptors, issue a fire control command, and close an in-space cross-link to send real-time updates post-deployment,\u201d Apex said in a statement.<\/p>\n

The Orbital Magazine on Apex\u2019s drawing board could eventually carry more than 11,000 pounds (5,000 kilograms) of interceptor payload, the company said. \u201cOrbital Magazines host one or many interceptors, allowing thousands of SBIs to be staged in orbit.”\u200d<\/p>\n

Apex is spending about $15 million of its own money on Project Shadow. Cinnamon said Apex is working with other companies on \u201ckey parts of the interceptor and mission analysis\u201d for Project Shadow, but he wasn\u2019t ready to identify them yet. One possible propulsion supplier is Anduril Industries, the weapons company started by Oculus founder Palmer Luckey in 2017. Apex and Anduril have worked together before.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we\u2019re very good at is high-rate manufacturing and piecing it together,\u201d Cinnamon said. \u201cWe have suppliers for everything else.\u201d<\/p>\n

Apex is the first company to publicly disclose any details for an SBI demonstration, but it won\u2019t be the last. Cinnamon said Apex will provide further updates on Project Shadow as it nears launch.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re talking about it publicly because I believe it\u2019s really important to inspire both the US and our allies, and show the pace of innovation and show what\u2019s possible in today\u2019s world,\u201d Cinnamon said. \u201cWe are very fortunate to have an amazing team, a very large war chest of capital, and the ability to go do a project like this, truly for the good of the US and the good of our allies.\u201d<\/p>\n

,<\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

A solid rocket motor designed for the ascent vehicle for NASA\u2019s Mars Sample Return mission was test-fired by Northrop Grumman in 2023. A similar rocket motor could be used for space-based interceptors.<\/p>\n

Credit:
\n NASA<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n

The usual suspects<\/h2>\n

Apex will have a lot of competition vying for a slice of Golden Dome. America\u2019s largest defense contractors have all signaled their interest in tapping into Golden Dome cash flows.<\/p>\n

Lockheed Martin has submitted proposals to the Pentagon for space-based interceptors, the company\u2019s CEO, James Taiclet, said Tuesday in a quarterly earnings call.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re actually planning for a real on-orbit, space-based interceptor demonstration by 2028,\u201d Taiclet said, without providing further details. Taiclet said Lockheed Martin is also working on command and control solutions for Golden Dome.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the same time, we\u2019re rapidly increasing production capacity across the missiles, sensors, battle management systems, and satellite integration opportunities that will be directly relevant to achieve the overarching objective of Golden Dome,\u201d Taiclet said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSBI, the space-based interceptor, is one of those,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are building prototypes\u2014full operational prototypes, not things in labs, not stuff on test stands, things that will go into space, or in the air, or fly across a missile range. These are real devices that will work and that can be produced at scale. So the space-based interceptor is one we\u2019ve been pursuing already, and that\u2019s all I can say about that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Northrop Grumman officials have made similar statements. Kathy Warden, Northrop\u2019s CEO, has said her company is currently conducting \u201cground-based tests\u201d of SBI-related technology. She didn\u2019t describe the tests, although Northrop Grumman is the nation\u2019s top supplier of solid rocket motors, a key piece of space-based interceptors, and regularly fires them on test stands.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe architecture and spend plan for Golden Dome are not published, so I won\u2019t comment on those specifically,\u201d Warden said Tuesday. \u201cWe are providing some high-fidelity operational analysis that can help the customer understand those requirements, as well as ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Defense contractors are in full sales mode to win a piece of a potentially trillion-dollar pie for development of the Trump administration\u2019s proposed Golden Dome missile shield. CEOs are touting their companies\u2019 ability to rapidly spool up satellite, sensor, and rocket production. Publicly, they all agree with the assertion of Pentagon officials that US industry […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43681,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43680"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43680"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43680\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43681"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}