This week marked the conclusion of World Space Business Week (WSBW) in Paris, which brought together top executives, investors, and government stakeholders for four days of strategy-setting and deal-making. One theme that cut through nearly every panel and fireside chat: the satellite business is no longer just about selling capacity.
Operators are racing to incorporate AI, defense partnerships, sovereign security mandates, and direct-to-device (D2D) connectivity into their platforms. Below, we’ve rounded up key conversations from WSBW 2026, from operators’ shift to multi-domain operations to SES’s push for vertical integration, and the growing role of AI and space-based computing.
Satellite Industry Moves Into Multi-Domain Operations
Satellite operators outlined a broader shift in the commercial space industry during “The Strategy Shift Among Global Operators” panel, moving away from traditional bandwidth capacity and toward multi-domain capabilities influenced by AI, defense, sovereign security, and D2D connectivity.
SES’s Shift to Vertical Integration
During his fireside chat at WSBW, SES’s CEO Adel Al-Saleh described the company’s evolution from a traditional satellite operator to a vertically integrated space solutions company with more control over the technologies and capabilities needed to support its expansion. The development of meoSphere and IRIS², new satellite manufacturing capabilities, and SES’s partnership with Elveo Mobile to create a European manufacturing and supply chain ecosystem for D2D satellites, were some of the milestones Al-Saleh highlighted. These efforts, along with its multi-orbit GEO and MEO networks, reflect the company’s growing focus on D2D services, hosted payloads, sensing, space situational awareness, and secure communications. Al-Saleh emphasized that this expanded portfolio is designed to support more robust, secure, and flexible connectivity for commercial, government, and institutional customers while giving the company more control over how its capabilities are developed and integrated.
AI and Space Computing Reshape Satellite Architecture
In the “Space-based Computing: Enabling AI in Orbit and on Earth” panel, leaders assessed the convergence of space-based computing and AI, with an emphasis on how these developments will reshape commercial business models and satellite architectures. The experts highlighted that integrating AI into Earth observation greatly lowers data latency, optimizes downlink efficiency, and enhances real-time capabilities for intelligence and defense applications. Financial discussions revealed that advanced AI infrastructure rather than energy consumption is the main expense, with companies offering a range of models from dedicated hardware to comprehensive services. Additionally, the leaders emphasized that orbit-based processing will create an entirely new commercial ecosystem and mirror successful terrestrial economics. Even though there are still a lot of unknowns and untapped market opportunities, industry pioneers see computing in space as an essential extension of terrestrial data networks.
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