Space industry software maker Kubos Corp. is being acquired by Redmond, Washington-based Xplore in a deal that turns Xplore from a customer to an owner and developer of the Kubos product.
Kubos — which moved from Texas to Oregon in 2020 — makes cloud-based mission control software that allows satellite operators to control and receive data from spacecraft in low-earth orbit. The company works with several satellites types, allowing it to collect weather, imaging, communications and telemetry data.
Co-founder and CEO Tyler Browder, along with other key Kubos employees, is joining Xplore as part of the deal.
Xplore is a satellite maker and space services company. A startup itself, Xplore raised $12 million from investors earlier this year. Additionally, Xplore has about $4 million in contracts from customers in the federal government, according to reporting by the Puget Sound Business Journal.
Kubos software is called Major Tom. The company was founded in 2015 and had customers including private companies, military and government, both foreign and domestic.
Neither company would get into the details on the deal or the timing, but Xplore founder and Chief Operations Officer Lisa Rich said the acquisition is an opportunity to take the Major Tom software “to the next level.”
Browder will be Xplore’s Business Development Director for Mission Operations.
“In my new role I will continue to build and grow the Major Tom platform into an expanded service offering. With Xplore’s support and expert team, I am confident in our ability to scale operations and provide enhanced functionality to our customers," said Browder.
For Xplore, adding the Major Tom product to its capability is a critical element for the company.
"We are a customer-focused commercial space company that is now both a customer and developer of Major Tom,” Rich said. “As users, developers and stakeholders, the ability to easily connect and setup command and control systems for satellites and constellations is essential. Our unique perspective will enable us to continually improve the features and capabilities of our flight-ready mission control system from the inside out."
Kubos had raised $5 million from investors including Boost VC and venture capitalist Tim Draper.
