The 2025 SATELLITE Conference and Exhibition Attracted More than 14,000 Attendees

Washington, D.C. March 21, 2025 – The 2025 SATELLITE Conference & Exhibition united the global satellite and space community and welcomed the debut of GovMilSpace from March 10-13, 2025, in Washington, D.C. This year, SATELLITE Week drew 14,904 attendees and a show record 473 exhibitors to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, and with 280 speakers on the agenda, the show provided valuable days to learn, network, and discover the newest innovations shaping the future of the space sector.

“SATELLITE 2025 highlighted the power of connectivity and welcomed a dynamic, diverse crowd that’s representative of where this industry is headed,” said Jeffrey Hill, Executive Chairman of SATELLITE 2025. “The industry came together and discussed mergers and joint ventures, announced strategic partnerships, launched innovative new products, and established relationships to help meet growing demands in satellite communications. We were thrilled by the reception of the inaugural GovMilSpace, as well as with the successful roll-out of many new features to help foster these connections. And we’re grateful for all the incredible speakers who led informative conversations that allow our industry to grow. It’s through collaboration and this sharing of knowledge that we can collectively enhance global satellite capabilities and build a resilient and sustainable future for our industry.”

Attendees represented leading global companies in satellites, space, telecommunications, transportation, finance, energy, media, government, military and defense, intelligence, cybersecurity, and other commercial markets. Overall, the audience of 14,904 was comprised of 31% from government sectors and 10% from commercial industries, including transportation and energy. Notably, 23% of attendees were international participants, and nearly 40% were first-time attendees. The inaugural GovMilSpace attracted more than 650 participants to the conference sessions and more than 4,000 attendees from over 35 countries to the show floor, solidifying its position as a premier gathering for the defense and space sectors.

In the exhibit hall, this year’s 473 exhibitors and included 110 new exhibitors and 24 companies in the Startup Pavilion. The exhibit area covered 90,800 NSF and encompassed several new spaces: A dedicated GovMilSpace pavilion connected government and military satellite and space service providers with end-users; the Tech Theater moved onto the show floor and made more education easily accessible; the new Meeting Hub fostered strategic partnerships; and the new Brew Lounge provided fun daily networking events.

With 280 speakers on the conference agenda, there was an abundance of insight shared by top executives, government officials, and thought leaders. At GovMilSpace 2025, developed in partnership with Defense Daily and the Satellite Industry Association (SIA), keynote speaker Vice Admiral Frank Whitworth, director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), covered the accelerated use of AI throughout the organization. At the Tuesday Opening General Session on March 11, keynote speaker SES CEO Adel Al-Saleh pointed to growing demand and increased share for companies across the market – read more here. Panelists at the Wednesday Opening General session on March 12 discussed global cooperation, with Michelle Parker, vice president of Space Missions, Systems Defense, Space & Security at Boeing, sharing how multi-orbit constellations could expand capabilities – read the recap here.

A highlight on the schedule was Via Satellite's annual Awards Luncheon which unveiled the recipients of Satellite Executive of the Year and Satellite Technology of the Year, plus the Startup Space 2025 Pitch Competition winner. The 2024 Satellite Technology of the Year recipient was Agatha AI by Slingshot Aerospace, the cutting-edge AI revolutionizing space domain awareness by detecting even the slightest spacecraft anomalies and predicting potential threats. The 2024 Satellite Executive of the Year was awarded to Emile de Rijk, CEO of SWISSto12, who is strengthening the competitiveness and cost-effectiveness of the GEO satellite market with the groundbreaking HummingSat GEO satellite platform. And in the most competitive Startup Space in the event's history, Phemotron Systems, led by Ishola, was this year's winner. Phemotron Systems is aiming to launch a 12U small satellite cubesat platform with a high-performing AI engine that can execute data gathering tasks at higher speeds. 

SATELLITE and GovMilSpace return to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., next year from March 23-26, 2026. More information can be found at satshow.com