Rakuten and Vodafone led a $110m investment in AST & Science.

Rakuten, a provider of internet services, and Vodafone, a telecoms and technology service provider, led a $110m investment in AST & Science, which builds the broadband cellular network in space to operate directly with standard, unmodified mobile devices based on our extensive IP and patent portfolio. Other investors include American Tower, Cisneros, Samsung NEXT and founder Abel Avellan, were also participated in the investment. “SpaceMobile will be particularly transformative to the growing $1tn annual global mobile market because it will eliminate the coverage gaps faced by today’s five billion mobile subscribers moving in and out of connectivity every day. It will also help the world’s most under-served communities to access the latest mobile services much sooner than predicted, helping more people to access the digital economy,” Abel Avellan, AST & Science Chairman and CEO.