Planet Labs UK has opened a new office in central London, reinforcing its commitment to the United Kingdom as a critical partner in the high-growth space economy. The office will serve as a national hub for AI and analytics partnerships, positioning the company at the centre of Britain's commercial technology sector. This strategic location near Westminster and Whitehall aims to deepen engagement with policymakers and stakeholders, including the Ministry of Defence (MoD), the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), and NATO alliance representatives.

Will Marshall, co-founder and CEO of Planet, highlighted the economic opportunity in downstream services, noting the UK's leadership in space and AI. "We look forward to continuing working closely with the UK Government and the ecosystem of partners across the country to expand adoption of Earth Observation capabilities across all sectors of the economy," Marshall said. The company plans to increase hiring efforts in the UK, targeting talent from the space, data science, and AI communities.

Planet has a long history in the UK, with the Goonhilly Earth Station in Cornwall supporting high-frequency data downlinks from its constellation of over 200 satellites. The UK is the only country with executive leadership based locally outside the US, and the team has grown to over 30 members. Space Minister Liz Lloyd welcomed the move, stating it demonstrates confidence in the UK's science and technology ecosystem and creates highly-skilled jobs.

The company maintains partnerships with key UK government agencies, including England's Rural Payments Agency and the devolved governments of Wales and Scotland. It also collaborates with organisations such as UKspace, TechUK, Space4Climate, ADS Group, the British Association of Remote Sensing Companies (BARSC), and the King’s Sustainable Markets Initiative. Charlie Candy, Chief Revenue Officer and UK Managing Director at Planet, emphasized the office's role in serving critical customers and hosting discussions on innovative solutions.

European Expansion

The London office is the latest addition to Planet's European network, which includes its European headquarters and a planned satellite manufacturing facility in Berlin. Other offices are located in Haarlem, Ljubljana, and Graz. Europe accounts for over 30% of Planet's global team. Ground stations in the UK, Germany, Iceland, and Norway download nearly 50% of the company's data, supporting local space capabilities and data sovereignty.

Planet Labs PBC has successfully launched Pelican-11, a technology demonstration satellite designed to validate capabilities for its second-generation (Gen 2) high-resolution Pelican fleet. The spacecraft was deployed to orbit aboard the Transporter-17 rideshare mission with SpaceX from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Planet has established initial contact with the satellite and commenced the commissioning process.

Pelican-11 serves as a dedicated engineering pathfinder to test new hardware and calibration methods in the space environment before integration into the production Gen 2 fleet. While the current Gen 1 Pelicans capture imagery at up to 50 cm class resolution, the Gen 2 satellites are designed to deliver up to 30 cm class imagery. This tech demonstration satellite is not expected to produce commercially available data.

The launch supports Planet's strategy to scale its high-resolution, AI-powered monitoring capacity to meet growing global customer demand. The company plans to launch additional Pelican spacecraft over the next year to expand its constellation.

Pelican Fleet Specifications

Planet Labs PBC is a public benefit corporation listed on the New York Stock Exchange as PL. The company designs, builds, and operates a fleet of Earth observation satellites, providing data and insights to agriculture, forestry, intelligence, and government sectors.