In a surprising career shift, former Disney Channel star Bridgit Mendler has ventured into the space industry by launching her satellite startup, Northwood Space. The company aims to revolutionize the way satellite data is transmitted to Earth.
What Happened: Mendler, known for her roles in popular Disney shows like “Good Luck Charlie” and “Wizards of Waverly Place,” has transitioned from her entertainment career to the space industry. She is now the CEO of Northwood Space, a startup based in El Segundo, California, reported CNBC.
"The vision is a data highway between Earth and space," Mendler said. "Space is getting easier along so many different dimensions but still the actual exercise of sending data to and from space is difficult. You have difficulty finding an access point for contacting your satellite," according to the report.
Northwood Space, rather than focusing on building rockets or satellites, will concentrate on mass-producing ground stations, also known as teleports. These ground stations are the large, circular antennas that connect to satellites in space.
The startup has already secured approximately $6 million in initial funding from prominent venture investors, including Founders Fund, Andreessen Horowitz, and Also Capital.
Mendler is leading Northwood Space alongside her husband, Griffin Cleverly, who serves as the startup’s chief technology officer, and Shaurya Luthra, the head of software. Both Cleverly and Luthra have engineering backgrounds, with experience at companies like Lockheed Martin and the Mitre Corporation.
Northwood aims to offer its customers a similar experience to renting server capacity from Amazon Web Services or Microsoft's Azure. This allows them to avoid the capital expenditure required to build and operate their servers.
The startup plans to perform its initial test by connecting to a spacecraft in orbit later this year.
Why It Matters: Mendler’s entry into the space industry comes at a time when the sector is undergoing significant developments. Companies like Amazon and SpaceX are making significant strides in the space industry with their satellite projects. In November, Amazon said that Project Kuiper is on track to begin mass satellite production ahead of a full-scale deployment in the first half of 2024 before entering beta testing with select customers later in the year.
Northwood Space’s focus on ground stations could potentially address the growing need for efficient data transmission from space, especially as the demand for satellite services continues to rise. The startup’s ability to mass-produce ground stations and provide them to satellite operators within days could significantly impact the space industry’s infrastructure.
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