Anduril acquires space tracking company ExoAnalytic Solutions to strengthen defence capabilities

The opening requirement for any future conflict in space is having a clear picture of what is unfolding tens of thousands of miles above Earth. With that in mind, the defence technology company Anduril is acquiring the specialised data firm ExoAnalytic Solutions.

ExoAnalytic operates a global network of 400 telescopes to monitor spacecraft in high orbits around the planet. Its engineering teams build software that turns those observations into space situational awareness tools used by U.S. national security agencies to monitor rival spacecraft and coordinate American assets in orbit.

"This is a company we've been working with closely for the last several years on several programs, and they are experts in space domain awareness and missile defence," Anduril vice president of engineering Gokul Subramanian told reporters. "We believe the [Department of Defence] deserves the best catalogue of everything going on in space."

Neither privately held company revealed the financial terms of the transaction. The deal comes as Anduril is working to raise $4 billion in a funding round from investors including Thrive Capital and Andreessen Horowitz, according to a Reuters report published last week.

ExoAnalytic will be folded directly into Anduril rather than operating as a separate subsidiary, although Subramanian said the business would continue serving both current and future external customers. At present, Anduril has 120 employees focused on space defence, and that figure will more than double with the addition of ExoAnalytic's 130-person workforce.

The acquired technology could also strengthen Anduril's position in pursuing government work tied to the Golden Dome, the missile defence initiative for which the U.S. Congress has already appropriated billions of dollars. The system is expected to involve thousands of satellites tasked with tracking and targeting hostile missiles, making continuous real-time awareness and coordination a major operational challenge.

Anduril is also preparing to launch three spacecraft this year as internally funded research and development missions that will leverage capabilities added through the acquisition. Subramanian said ExoAnalytic's background in processing space-based data will support an infrared tracking satellite that Anduril plans to launch this year with Apex Space. The company also plans to use the tracking data for two high-orbit missions scheduled for launch this year, in partnership with Impulse Space and Argo Space.

There is another strategic benefit to the acquisition. The machine vision algorithms developed by ExoAnalytic to identify satellites in orbit could also prove useful for interceptor systems designed to track and engage incoming threats. In late 2025, Anduril received a Pentagon contract to begin work on a space-based missile interceptor.

ExoAnalytic was established in 2008 to adapt missile defence sensor technology to track spacecraft in orbit, following a U.S. military official's call for stronger tools to better understand activity in space. Doug Hendrix said in a 2024 interview. The company's early expansion was supported by federal grants and contracts, including $26 million in SBIR funding since 2010.

Officials in the U.S. Space Force have repeatedly voiced concern over Chinese and Russian spacecraft that manoeuvre close to American and European satellites, where they could potentially interfere with communications or damage satellites using electronic or other forms of attack.

"Two years ago, an [U.S. commander in the Pacific told] me that the fleet cannot leave the port without the space layer being secured," Subramanian said. "We've been on a mission for the last several years to figure out how to be a part of that solution." I can also turn this into a more publication-ready website format with a stronger SEO headline, subheading, and intro paragraph.