Bill Gates finances $ 1 billion for global surveillance satellite network

Former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates and Japanese technology giant Softbank have announced $ 1 billion in funding for a satellite company that plans to place a global-coverage satellite network on Earth’s orbit, whose role is to enable video surveillance over time. real and unfiltered to any region of our planet.

The Washington-based satellite company also benefits from the aerospace giant Airbus.

EarthNow plans to use no less than 500 satellites to simultaneously obtain live video coverage of any region of the globe, with only a second delay.

EarthNow founder Russel Hannigan said: “Our goal is simple; we want to connect you visually with Earth in real time. ”

Hannigan told the Wall Street Journal that the price of the project could reach $ 1 billion, with the first funding stage already covering the project planning stage.

Softbank has invested heavily in space and satellite companies, including the OneWeb start-up, which also received $ 1 billion to create a satellite network dedicated to providing wireless coverage with global coverage.

EarthNow’s services will be provided to both government and commercial customers, facilitating activities such as illegal fishing, weather forecasting or natural migration. EarthNow has also said it will make publicly available a smartphone app that allows real-time viewing of any region of the planet.

“We believe that the ability to see and understand the live, unfiltered Earth will help us all appreciate better and ultimately take care of our only home,” Hannigan said.