{"id":25581,"date":"2026-03-02T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-02T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581"},"modified":"2026-03-01T18:38:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T18:38:06","slug":"gsma-foundry-and-esa-announce-access-to-new-funding-worth-up-to-e100m-for-ai-ntn-d2d-and-6g-at-mwc26-barcelona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/press-release\/gsma-foundry-and-esa-announce-access-to-new-funding-worth-up-to-e100m-for-ai-ntn-d2d-and-6g-at-mwc26-barcelona\/","title":{"rendered":"GSMA Foundry\u00a0and\u00a0ESA Announce\u00a0Access to\u00a0New Funding worth\u00a0up to\u00a0\u20ac100M for AI, NTN,\u00a0D2D\u00a0and\u00a06G\u00a0at MWC26\u00a0Barcelona\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em>New&nbsp;ESA&nbsp;Member&nbsp;State&nbsp;funding&nbsp;builds on&nbsp;successful&nbsp;awards&nbsp;with&nbsp;NextWorks, Lasting Software,&nbsp;OQ Technology,&nbsp;Celeste,&nbsp;AWTG,&nbsp;and&nbsp;Keysight &amp;&nbsp;Sateliot<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/><strong>2&nbsp;March&nbsp;2026,&nbsp;Barcelona<\/strong>:&nbsp;GSMA Foundry and the European Space Agency (ESA)&nbsp;today announced&nbsp;new&nbsp;funding worth up to&nbsp;\u20ac100 million&nbsp;for&nbsp;projects&nbsp;to&nbsp;accelerate the convergence of space and mobile industries.&nbsp;This&nbsp;new&nbsp;initiative, funded by&nbsp;ESA,&nbsp;aims to scale innovations&nbsp;in\u202fAI&nbsp;for&nbsp;Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN),&nbsp;Direct-to-Device (D2D)\u202fconnectivity,&nbsp;5G\/6G&nbsp;Hubs&nbsp;and 6G Innovation.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Building on the&nbsp;success of&nbsp;the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/get-involved\/gsma-foundry\/european-space-agency\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GSMA Foundry and ESA partnership&nbsp;established&nbsp;in 2024<\/a>, this&nbsp;major financial commitment&nbsp;from ESA&nbsp;is designed to fast-track the&nbsp;commercialisation&nbsp;of hybrid&nbsp;networks,&nbsp;and&nbsp;help&nbsp;ensure&nbsp;seamless global connectivity through the integration of satellite and terrestrial assets. The funding targets&nbsp;four&nbsp;strategic pillars,&nbsp;focusing on:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>AI x NTN:<\/strong>\u202fLeveraging&nbsp;artificial intelligence to orchestrate dynamic spectrum and traffic across multi-orbit satellite and terrestrial networks.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Direct-to-Device (D2D):<\/strong>\u202fSupporting pilots that deliver standards-based connectivity directly to consumer smartphones and IoT devices globally.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>5G\/6G Hubs:<\/strong>\u202fEstablishing&nbsp;collaborative testbeds for operators and developers to co-create the next generation of hybrid network infrastructure.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>6G Innovation:&nbsp;<\/strong>Focusing on early-stage 6G technologies, such as edge intelligence and advanced IoT,&nbsp;by&nbsp;emphasising&nbsp;areas where satellite-terrestrial convergence will play a crucial&nbsp;role.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Laurent&nbsp;Jaffart, Director of Resilience, Navigation and Connectivity at ESA, said:<\/strong>&nbsp;<em>&#8220;Our Member States&#8217; unwavering support in our programmes, particularly during the ESA Council at Ministerial Level (CM25), has made this collaboration with GSMA Foundry possible. At Mobile World Congress,&nbsp;we\u2019re&nbsp;collectively marking a pivotal moment for the convergence of Europe&#8217;s space and telecommunication sectors. By offering access to funding for AI, NTN, and D2D, we are not just supporting the development of technology \u2013 we are preparing for the seamless, global 6G infrastructure of tomorrow.\u201d<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Alex Sinclair,\u202fChief Technology Officer at GSMA, added:\u202f<\/strong>&#8220;<em>By combining the reach of the mobile industry with ESA\u2019s space expertise, we are unlocking a new era of connectivity. This funding and our showcase&nbsp;demonstrate&nbsp;that hybrid networks are no longer a concept \u2013 they are a commercial reality. The collaborative breakthroughs you see today signal a step-change for digital transformation, making seamless and universal connectivity possible even in the most remote regions. Together, we are driving forward innovation that will empower businesses,&nbsp;revolutionise&nbsp;industries&nbsp;and bring transformative benefits to society as a whole.<\/em>&#8221;&nbsp;<em>\u202f<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>ESA and GSMA Foundry NTN Showcase&nbsp;at&nbsp;<\/strong><strong>MWC26 Barcelona<\/strong><strong>&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mwcbarcelona.com\/exhibitors\/35690-esa-and-gsma-foundry-ntn-showcase\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ESA and GSMA Foundry NTN Showcase<\/a>&nbsp;is a highlight of the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mwcbarcelona.com\/exhibition\/new-frontiers\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">New Frontiers zone<\/a>&nbsp;in Hall 6. Featuring&nbsp;fifteen&nbsp;live demonstrations&nbsp;that&nbsp;bring&nbsp;space-to-mobile convergence to life, the showcase will include&nbsp;standards-based&nbsp;D2D&nbsp;connectivity, NTN orchestration,&nbsp;AI-driven networks,&nbsp;and early&nbsp;6G innovation&nbsp;illustrating how hybrid satellite&nbsp;and&nbsp;terrestrial architectures expand coverage&nbsp;to&nbsp;boost resilience and enable new services.&nbsp;The demonstrations will be supported by&nbsp;Accedo,&nbsp;Autodiscovery, AWTG, Celeste,&nbsp;Filtronic, Keysight&nbsp;&amp;&nbsp;Sateliot, Lasting Software, MediaTek&nbsp;&amp; Rohde&nbsp;&amp;&nbsp;Schwarz, Microamp,&nbsp;MinWave&nbsp;Technologies, NextWorks, Nokia&nbsp;RXRM, OQ Technology, Photon Industries&nbsp;and&nbsp;Qoherent.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/mwcbarcelona.com\/agenda\/sessions\/6078-european-space-agency-how-technological-disruption-secures-europes-ntn-future\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Monday at 12:00<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mwcbarcelona.com\/agenda\/speakers\/17303-laurent-jaffart\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Laurent Jaffart<\/a>, Director of Resilience, Navigation and Connectivity at ESA, will join GSMA&#8217;s Chief Technology Officer,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mwcbarcelona.com\/agenda\/speakers\/16920-alex-sinclair\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Alex Sinclair<\/a>, on the New&nbsp;Frontiers Stage&nbsp;for a discussion on&nbsp;the&nbsp;\u20ac100M funding announcement from ESA.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><strong><\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mwcbarcelona.com\/agenda\/speakers\/17313-fabrizio-de-paolis\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Fabrizio De Paolis<\/a>, ESA 5G\/6G Implementation Manager,&nbsp;will&nbsp;be moderating a panel&nbsp;on NTN experimentation&nbsp;on the New Frontiers Stage on&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mwcbarcelona.com\/agenda\/sessions\/6139-european-space-agency-the-success-of-ntn-experimentation-on-a-global-scale\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Tuesday at 10:30<\/a>, while&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mwcbarcelona.com\/agenda\/speakers\/17311-antonio-franchi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Antonio Franchi<\/a>, Head of ESA\u2019s Space for 5G\/6G &amp; Sustainable Connectivity programme, will speak at the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mwcbarcelona.com\/agenda\/sessions\/6135-satellite-and-ntn-summit\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Satellite and NTN Summit<\/a>&nbsp;on Wednesday at 10:00.&nbsp;The discussions will outline the roadmap to 6G and the role of space in sustainable, real-world deployments for operators,&nbsp;developers&nbsp;and enterprises.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At&nbsp;the&nbsp;ESA&nbsp;and GSMA Foundry NTN Showcase, ESA will&nbsp;offer live satellite&nbsp;demonstrations&nbsp;on Monday&nbsp;at 14:00&nbsp;and Tuesday at 11:00&nbsp;and 14:00,&nbsp;allowing visitors to see&nbsp;how Europe will explore&nbsp;the Moon in the coming decade. The live demonstration brings the capabilities of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/luna-analog-facility.de\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">LUNA<\/a>&nbsp;\u2013 Europe\u2019s gateway to the lunar surface \u2013 to the world stage, by&nbsp;showcasing&nbsp;how advanced connectivity, robotics, mixed&nbsp;reality&nbsp;and satellite communications will support ESA\u2019s role in the international return to the Moon.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The LUNA\u2011themed demonstration at MWC26&nbsp;showcases&nbsp;the future of space exploration powered by advanced European connectivity. Companies from across Europe \u2013 including Nokia&nbsp;RXRM, Photon Industries,&nbsp;Autodiscovery&nbsp;and Microamp \u2013 are joining ESA to show how 5G&nbsp;mmWave, satellite networks, mixed reality and robotics will make it possible to remotely control lunar landers, rovers, and even humanoid robots from Earth or the International Space Station (ISS).&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A mixed\u2011reality model of ESA\u2019s Argonaut lunar lander, the European lander designed to deliver scientific payloads and cargo to the Moon, is a key feature. Visitors can watch Nokia&nbsp;RXRM\u2019s ultra\u2011high\u2011resolution 360\u00b0 camera streaming from inside the LUNA facility and remotely&nbsp;operate&nbsp;an ESA training rover connected over satellite, proving how astronauts and experts could one day work together seamlessly across Earth\u2013Moon distances.&nbsp;<br \/><em><\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Celebrating&nbsp;the GSMA Foundry Excellence Awards winners&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/get-involved\/gsma-foundry\/gsma-foundry-excellence-awards-2026\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GSMA Foundry&nbsp;Excellence&nbsp;Awards<\/a>&nbsp;Ceremony held on Sunday 1 March at&nbsp;the iconic&nbsp;Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya&nbsp;also saw the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/get-involved\/gsma-foundry\/esa-x-gsma-foundry-challenges-2025\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ESA and GSMA Foundry Challenges 2025<\/a>&nbsp;winners&nbsp;honoured&nbsp;for their breakthrough contributions to the ecosystem&nbsp;in the following categories:&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.awtg.co.uk\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">AWTG<\/a>: Winner of the&nbsp;<strong>Fixed Mobile Convergence for TN-NTN Networks<\/strong>&nbsp;category,&nbsp;recognised&nbsp;for delivering an innovative solution that enables seamless integration between terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.keysight.com\/gb\/en\/home.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Keysight<\/a>&nbsp;&amp;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/sateliot.space\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Sateliot<\/a>:&nbsp;Winners&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;<strong>6G Innovation<\/strong>&nbsp;category for their groundbreaking advancements in next-generation mobile network technology.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lasting.space\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Lasting Software<\/a>:&nbsp;Recognised&nbsp;as the first award recipient to receive funding&nbsp;for&nbsp;<strong>5G\/6G Hubs<\/strong>&nbsp;in Romania, supporting collaborative development and innovation in hybrid network infrastructure.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextworks.it\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">NextWorks<\/a>:&nbsp;Winner of the&nbsp;<strong>NTN x Open Gateway Challenge<\/strong>&nbsp;for pioneering integration of NTN in mobile core architectures across 5G, IoT, private networks and GSMA Open Gateway APIs. This project is notable as the first completed initiative from ESA x GSMA Foundry funding.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.oqtec.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">OQ Technologies<\/a>&nbsp;&amp;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.celeste.fr\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Celeste<\/a>: Winners in the&nbsp;<strong>D2D Connectivity<\/strong>&nbsp;category,&nbsp;recognised&nbsp;for their achievements in&nbsp;D2D&nbsp;connectivity, expanding global reach for consumer smartphones and IoT devices.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>-ENDS-&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About GSMA<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The GSMA is a global organisation unifying the mobile ecosystem to discover, develop and deliver innovation foundational to positive business environments and societal change. Our vision is to unlock the full power of connectivity so that people, industry, and society thrive.&nbsp;Representing&nbsp;mobile operators and organisations across the mobile ecosystem and adjacent industries, the GSMA delivers for its members across three broad pillars: Connectivity for Good, Industry Services and Solutions, and Outreach. This activity includes advancing policy, tackling today\u2019s biggest societal challenges, underpinning the technology and interoperability that make mobile work, and providing the world\u2019s largest platform to&nbsp;convene&nbsp;the mobile ecosystem at the MWC and M360 series of events.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We invite you to find out more at\u202f<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">gsma.com<\/a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About the European Space Agency<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The European Space Agency (ESA) provides Europe\u2019s gateway to space.\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>ESA is an intergovernmental&nbsp;organisation, created in 1975, with the mission to shape the development of Europe\u2019s space capability and ensure that investment in space delivers benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>ESA has 23 Member States: Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden,&nbsp;Switzerland&nbsp;and the United Kingdom. Latvia,&nbsp;Lithuania&nbsp;and Slovakia are Associate Members.\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>ESA&nbsp;has&nbsp;established&nbsp;formal cooperation with four Member States of the EU. Canada takes part in some ESA&nbsp;programmes&nbsp;under a Cooperation Agreement.\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By coordinating the financial and intellectual resources of its members, ESA can undertake&nbsp;programmes&nbsp;and activities far beyond the scope of any single European country. It is working&nbsp;in particular with&nbsp;the EU on implementing the Galileo and Copernicus&nbsp;programmes&nbsp;as well as with&nbsp;Eumetsat&nbsp;for the development of meteorological missions.\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Learn more about ESA at&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.esa.int\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">www.esa.int<\/a>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Media Contacts<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>GSMA Press Office&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><a href=\"mailto:pressoffice@gsma.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pressoffice@gsma.com<\/a>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>New&nbsp;ESA&nbsp;Member&nbsp;State&nbsp;funding&nbsp;builds on&nbsp;successful&nbsp;awards&nbsp;with&nbsp;NextWorks, Lasting Software,&nbsp;OQ Technology,&nbsp;Celeste,&nbsp;AWTG,&nbsp;and&nbsp;Keysight &amp;&nbsp;Sateliot&nbsp; &nbsp;2&nbsp;March&nbsp;2026,&nbsp;Barcelona:&nbsp;GSMA Foundry and the European Space Agency (ESA)&nbsp;today announced&nbsp;new&nbsp;funding worth up to&nbsp;\u20ac100 million&nbsp;for&nbsp;projects&nbsp;to&nbsp;accelerate the convergence of space and mobile industries.&nbsp;This&nbsp;new&nbsp;initiative, funded by&nbsp;ESA,&nbsp;aims to scale innovations&nbsp;in\u202fAI&nbsp;for&nbsp;Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN),&nbsp;Direct-to-Device (D2D)\u202fconnectivity,&nbsp;5G\/6G&nbsp;Hubs&nbsp;and 6G Innovation.&nbsp;&nbsp; Building on the&nbsp;success of&nbsp;the&nbsp;GSMA Foundry and ESA partnership&nbsp;established&nbsp;in 2024, this&nbsp;major financial commitment&nbsp;from ESA&nbsp;is designed to fast-track the&nbsp;commercialisation&nbsp;of hybrid&nbsp;networks,&nbsp;and&nbsp;help&nbsp;ensure&nbsp;seamless global [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":116,"featured_media":25582,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"algolia_discover_type":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.0 (Yoast SEO v22.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>GSMA Foundry\u00a0and\u00a0ESA Announce\u00a0Access to\u00a0New Funding worth\u00a0up to\u00a0\u20ac100M for AI, NTN,\u00a0D2D\u00a0and\u00a06G\u00a0at MWC26\u00a0Barcelona\u00a0 - Newsroom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"GSMA Foundry\u00a0and\u00a0ESA Announce\u00a0Access to\u00a0New Funding worth\u00a0up to\u00a0\u20ac100M for AI, NTN,\u00a0D2D\u00a0and\u00a06G\u00a0at MWC26\u00a0Barcelona\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"New&nbsp;ESA&nbsp;Member&nbsp;State&nbsp;funding&nbsp;builds on&nbsp;successful&nbsp;awards&nbsp;with&nbsp;NextWorks, Lasting Software,&nbsp;OQ Technology,&nbsp;Celeste,&nbsp;AWTG,&nbsp;and&nbsp;Keysight &amp;&nbsp;Sateliot&nbsp; &nbsp;2&nbsp;March&nbsp;2026,&nbsp;Barcelona:&nbsp;GSMA Foundry and the European Space Agency (ESA)&nbsp;today announced&nbsp;new&nbsp;funding worth up to&nbsp;\u20ac100 million&nbsp;for&nbsp;projects&nbsp;to&nbsp;accelerate the convergence of space and mobile industries.&nbsp;This&nbsp;new&nbsp;initiative, funded by&nbsp;ESA,&nbsp;aims to scale innovations&nbsp;in\u202fAI&nbsp;for&nbsp;Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN),&nbsp;Direct-to-Device (D2D)\u202fconnectivity,&nbsp;5G\/6G&nbsp;Hubs&nbsp;and 6G Innovation.&nbsp;&nbsp; Building on the&nbsp;success of&nbsp;the&nbsp;GSMA Foundry and ESA partnership&nbsp;established&nbsp;in 2024, this&nbsp;major financial commitment&nbsp;from ESA&nbsp;is designed to fast-track the&nbsp;commercialisation&nbsp;of hybrid&nbsp;networks,&nbsp;and&nbsp;help&nbsp;ensure&nbsp;seamless global [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Newsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gsma\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-02T08:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-03-01T18:38:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/Space_Satelitte_Earth_Universe_Technology.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"378\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"ssharma@gsma.com\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@GSMA\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@GSMA\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"ssharma@gsma.com\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"GSMA Foundry\u00a0and\u00a0ESA Announce\u00a0Access to\u00a0New Funding worth\u00a0up to\u00a0\u20ac100M for AI, NTN,\u00a0D2D\u00a0and\u00a06G\u00a0at MWC26\u00a0Barcelona\u00a0 - Newsroom","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"GSMA Foundry\u00a0and\u00a0ESA Announce\u00a0Access to\u00a0New Funding worth\u00a0up to\u00a0\u20ac100M for AI, NTN,\u00a0D2D\u00a0and\u00a06G\u00a0at MWC26\u00a0Barcelona\u00a0","og_description":"New&nbsp;ESA&nbsp;Member&nbsp;State&nbsp;funding&nbsp;builds on&nbsp;successful&nbsp;awards&nbsp;with&nbsp;NextWorks, Lasting Software,&nbsp;OQ Technology,&nbsp;Celeste,&nbsp;AWTG,&nbsp;and&nbsp;Keysight &amp;&nbsp;Sateliot&nbsp; &nbsp;2&nbsp;March&nbsp;2026,&nbsp;Barcelona:&nbsp;GSMA Foundry and the European Space Agency (ESA)&nbsp;today announced&nbsp;new&nbsp;funding worth up to&nbsp;\u20ac100 million&nbsp;for&nbsp;projects&nbsp;to&nbsp;accelerate the convergence of space and mobile industries.&nbsp;This&nbsp;new&nbsp;initiative, funded by&nbsp;ESA,&nbsp;aims to scale innovations&nbsp;in\u202fAI&nbsp;for&nbsp;Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN),&nbsp;Direct-to-Device (D2D)\u202fconnectivity,&nbsp;5G\/6G&nbsp;Hubs&nbsp;and 6G Innovation.&nbsp;&nbsp; Building on the&nbsp;success of&nbsp;the&nbsp;GSMA Foundry and ESA partnership&nbsp;established&nbsp;in 2024, this&nbsp;major financial commitment&nbsp;from ESA&nbsp;is designed to fast-track the&nbsp;commercialisation&nbsp;of hybrid&nbsp;networks,&nbsp;and&nbsp;help&nbsp;ensure&nbsp;seamless global [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581","og_site_name":"Newsroom","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gsma\/","article_published_time":"2026-03-02T08:00:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-03-01T18:38:06+00:00","og_image":[{"width":600,"height":378,"url":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/Space_Satelitte_Earth_Universe_Technology.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"ssharma@gsma.com","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@GSMA","twitter_site":"@GSMA","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"ssharma@gsma.com","Estimated reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581"},"author":{"name":"ssharma@gsma.com","@id":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/e724eba4846a50206db8ca64bace5ceb"},"headline":"GSMA Foundry\u00a0and\u00a0ESA Announce\u00a0Access to\u00a0New Funding worth\u00a0up to\u00a0\u20ac100M for AI, NTN,\u00a0D2D\u00a0and\u00a06G\u00a0at MWC26\u00a0Barcelona\u00a0","datePublished":"2026-03-02T08:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-01T18:38:06+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581"},"wordCount":1593,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/Space_Satelitte_Earth_Universe_Technology.jpg","articleSection":["Press Release"],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581","url":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/newsroom\/?p=25581","name":"GSMA Foundry\u00a0and\u00a0ESA Announce\u00a0Access to\u00a0New Funding worth\u00a0up to\u00a0\u20ac100M for AI, NTN,\u00a0D2D\u00a0and\u00a06G\u00a0at MWC26\u00a0Barcelona\u00a0 - 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