Starshield: The Military-Grade Starlink No One is Talking About

In December 2022, SpaceX announced the creation of Starshield, a “secured satellite network for government entities.” The network is built on the back of SpaceX’s commercial constellation of low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites that provide broadband service under the brand name Starlink. Instead of the commercial retail broadband service that Starlink provides, Starshield aims to serve government customers to support “Earth observation,” communications, and hosted payloads. SpaceX boasts of the security and interoperability of the network, among other features. The company also lists proven partnerships including “ongoing work with the Department of Defense and other partners.” Starshield has received little media coverage compared to Starlink or other subsidiaries of SpaceX. This article tackles what Starshield is, how it is funded, and raises questions about its uses and operations.