HERNDON, Va. — BlackSky Technology Inc. (NYSE: BKSY) has secured a seven-figure, multi-year international contract to provide high-frequency satellite imagery and AI-enabled analytics to an undisclosed global customer.
The agreement expands an earlier pilot program into a full operational subscription. Under the deal, the customer will receive access to BlackSky’s Gen-2 and Gen-3 low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations.
The contract uses BlackSky’s two subscription services. Its On-Demand service provides global coverage, while the Assured subscription provides priority access to tasking capacity and analytics over designated regional areas.
Gen-2 and Gen-3 satellite capabilities
BlackSky’s Gen-2 constellation is designed for high-frequency monitoring, including dawn-to-dusk observation. The company’s Gen-3 satellites provide 35-centimeter-class imagery and are being added to the existing constellation.
BlackSky has said the two satellite generations are designed to complement each other. Gen-2 provides high-frequency monitoring and time-diverse imagery, while Gen-3 provides higher-resolution imagery for more detailed observation. The company has previously described the combined capability as useful for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) applications.
The customer will integrate imagery and analytics from both satellite generations into its existing defense command environments through Spectra, BlackSky’s tasking and analytics platform. The platform provides a centralized workflow for tasking, monitoring and analyzing information from multiple locations.
BlackSky’s existing Gen-3 contracts have also demonstrated demand for the higher-resolution imagery and AI-enabled analytics. In its first-quarter 2026 results, the company reported that an international defense customer had expanded from a Gen-3 pilot to a nearly $30 million annual Assured subscription, while another international Ministry of Defense signed a $25 million multi-year subscription.
AI-enabled satellite intelligence
The combined Gen-2 and Gen-3 system supports automated identification and classification of objects including vehicles, aircraft and maritime vessels.
BlackSky has previously said its Gen-3 imagery is used with AI-enabled analytics to provide customers with more detailed information while Gen-2 supports high-frequency monitoring. The company has also continued expanding its Gen-3 constellation during 2026. Its fourth Gen-3 satellite began delivering very-high-resolution imagery within hours of launch and entered commercial operations in less than one week, according to BlackSky.
BlackSky CEO Brian O’Toole said the new agreement demonstrates the value of combining the company’s Gen-2 and Gen-3 systems, allowing customers to use high-frequency monitoring together with very-high-resolution imagery through a single workflow.
The company has been converting several international pilot programs into longer-term subscriptions. In March 2026, BlackSky announced a seven-figure Assured extension contract with an international customer following an early-access program for Gen-3 imagery and AI-enabled analytics.
BlackSky, headquartered in Herndon, Virginia, operates a commercial low-Earth-orbit satellite constellation and the Spectra software platform, providing satellite imagery, monitoring and AI-enabled analytics to government and commercial customers.
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