TerraWatch Space Podcast

Happy new year, everyone. Hope you are having a great start to the year. Back to podcasting after the much-needed break!Today, I am speaking with Dr. Argyro Kavvada, who is the program manager at NASA’s Earth Sciences Division for their Sustainable Development Goals initiative, essentially focusing on how to translate Earth observation for sustainable development.It is an area I have always been fascinated about not just for the obvious reasons, but also because it focuses on converting EO to real value, until the last-mile impact. Argyro is a renowned expert in the area of using EO for sustainable development, working with several organisations around the world and helping countries monitor their SDGs using EO. She was also the lead editor for a book published recently on this subject.In this episode, Argyro and I discuss her story, her work at NASA, the use of Earth observation for tracking the SDGs and some examples, the challenges of converting EO data into impact, whether we are exploiting the full potential of EO for policymaking and more.And now I bring you, Argyro Kavvada.---Argyro's  Profile: https://appliedsciences.nasa.gov/about/our-team/argyro-kavvadaArgyro's Book: https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Earth+Observation+Applications+and+Global+Policy+Frameworks-p-9781119536710Argyro's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/argyro-kavvada-ph-d-0470a571/Argyro's Twitter: https://twitter.com/argie_kavvada---01:13: Argie's story and work at NASA07:16: What are the Sustainable Development Goals?10:19: Examples of use in Earth observation for SDGs18:36: Challenges of converting data into impact23:10: Were the SDGs created understanding the capabilities of EO?29:31: An overview of a book on the subject that Argie co-edited: "Earth Observation Applications and Global Policy Frameworks"32:29: Are we exploiting the full potential of EO for policymaking?36:55: State of EO and how it effects sustainable development initiatives39:54: What are we not talking about enough and what can we do better?43:35: Creating an inclusive, diverse future of EO---

Today, I am speaking with Mila Luleva from Rabobank, a multinational banking and financial services company, where Mila heads the remote sensing team.You might wonder what a bank is doing with Earth observation data and how they are going about integrating this technology into their processes. That's exactly why I wanted to have Mila on the podcast.In this episode, we talk about Rabobank and their business, how they use remote sensing, how they make decisions of developing EO solutions in-house vs outsourcing the development, the state of EO and how they benchmark different EO providers, how we can improve the adoption of EO and more.It was a great discussion and very different from the typical conversations you might have heard here on this podcast - mostly from the EO industry. It was insightful to get the views from the user side and hopefully, you enjoy this as much as I did.And now, I bring you Mila Luleva.Rabobank's Website: https://www.rabobank.comRabobank ACORN: https://acorn.rabobank.com/en/They are hiring: https://rabobank.jobs/en/Mila's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mluleva/---[ 01:18 ] Mila's background and overview of Rabobank[ 04:02 ] What does Rabobank has to do with Earth observation?[ 09:21 ] An example use case and the EO adoption process[ 14:35 ] In-house development vs outsourcing EO solution development [ 24:17 ] Focusing on data quality and processes - idealistic or necessary?[ 26:21 ] Roadmap for use of EO within Rabobank[ 28:32 ] Thoughts on the state of EO - focusing on satellite companies[ 31:53 ] Growth in downstream EO product companies and how Rabobank engages with them[ 34:50 ] Benchmarking the different service providers[ 39:36 ] How to make a case for the adoption of EO [ 43:01 ] Wrap-up questions---

Today, I am speaking with Awais Ahmed, co-founder and CEO of Pixxel, a space tech startup founded in India, with offices in the US, that is launching a constellation of Earth observation satellites collecting hyperspectral imagery.I have tracked Pixxel with two lenses over the years - one with my consultant hat analysing how this new startup will position itself and grow in the EO market and second, with my India hat looking at how Awais and his team in India are building India's first commercial EO satellite company.In this episode, we discuss Pixxel's founding journey, what they bring to the EO market, their strategy, how easy it is to use hyperspectral data, early adopters and key use cases, the investment from Accenture, how to grow the adoption of EO and more.Pixxel's Website: https://pixxel.space/Awais' Twitter: https://twitter.com/awaisahmedna[Thanks to Pixxel for sponsoring this episode]---[ 01:11 ] Awais' story[ 07:54 ] Starting a space-tech company in India[ 12:09 ] What is Pixxel bringing to the table?[ 19:38 ] How easy it is use to hyperspectral data?[ 23:44 ] Launch milestones[ 24:49 ] Early adopters and key use cases[ 29:00 ] Rio Tinto (Mining Corporation) and their use case with hyperspectral data[ 32:15 ] Satellite-as-a-service model and Pixxel's space segment[ 35:38 ] Investment from Accenture[ 38:27 ] State of EO, consolidation and outlook[ 43:40 ] Lack of focus on data quality[ 46:51 ] Adoption of EO in India[ 51:10 ] Worries about the state of space tech[ 53:06 ] Wrap-up---

In this episode, I am speaking with Sean Wiid, CEO of UP42, an Earth observation company providing simplified access to geospatial data and processing. UP42 has had quite an interesting journey over the years. I would put in the category of platforms in the rapidly growing EO market, providing access to multiple sources of geospatial data from different providers, along with other sources of complementary data and analytics - essentially making data easy to find, access and use to develop commercial applications.Platforms are a segment of the EO industry that usually doesn't get as much attention as the satellite companies, but I think they have an important role to play in the adoption of satellite data across industries. In this episode, Sean and I discuss UP42, their core capabilities and roadmap, their interesting pricing strategy, analysis-ready data, the state of EO, the future of EO platforms and more.UP42's website: https://up42.com/[Thanks to UP42 for sponsoring this episode]---[ 01:15 ] Intro - Sean's story[ 02:40 ] UP42 - Overview[ 08:03 ] Pricing strategy[ 15:25 ] What is UP42 is bringing to the EO market?[ 20:40 ] Scalability in EO[ 24:44 ] Core markets and use cases[ 30:27 ] Analysis-ready data and what it means for UP42[ 35:58 ] Towards a future of on-premise platforms and roadmap[ 45:33 ] State of EO and whether we need more EO data companies[ 51:07 ] What don't we talk about enough in EO and some hot takes[ 59:15 ] Outlook for UP42 and the future of EO platforms

In this episode, I am speaking with Arnaud Guérin from Preligens, startup based in France that is building software for the defence & intelligence sector, by applying artificial intelligence to satellite imagery, among other data sources.Preligens was in the news recently as they won a 7-year long, 240M EUR contract from the Ministere des Armees, the French Ministry of Defence , which I thought was a big win for both the company and the EO sector in Europe. The company has an interesting journey because contrary to other EO companies that build cloud-based, scalable products, they deploy software on-premise because that is how the defence sector operates. Also, their product is sensor-agnostic because in its early days, they couldn't get access to imagery gathered by French intelligence satellites. So, I wanted to speak to Arnaud to understand more about their capabilities strategy and where they are headed.In this episode. we discuss about Preligens, what AI brings to EO, how they develop on-premise solutions, the reason for being data-agnostic, verticalisation and more. Preligens website: https://preligens.comFrench MoD contract: https://preligens.com/resources/press/press-release-frances-general-directorate-armaments-dga-contracts-preligens-data[Thanks to Preligens for sponsoring this episode]---[ 01:35 ] : Overview of Preligens[ 03:34 ] : Core product offerings[ 06:43 ] : What AI brings to Earth observation[ 08:40 ] : On-premise platform vs cloud-based products[ 15:02 ] : About the 240M EUR contract from the French MoD[ 18:44 ] : The importance of being data-agnostic and helping customers answering a question[ 29:11 ] : Verticalisation and expanding to new markets[ 36:42 ] : Are there still data gaps?[ 38:44 ] : Is Preligens an EO company?[ 40:19 ] : SpaceTech in France[ 44:17 ] : What does Preligens mean and outlook for the company[ 47:36 ] : Wrap-up

In this episode, I am speaking with Arjen Vrielink from Satelligence. Satelligence is a startup based in the Netherlands that is building solutions to monitor deforestation, track supply chains and carbon stocks using Earth observation data.Arjen has been a twitter friend for a while and I really like his pragmatic takes on the future of the industry and outlook for EO. So, we talked about exactly that!In this episode. we discuss about his company Satelligence, their journey, strategy and tech stack, challenges associated with using satellite imagery and what I found to be a fascinating subject - the four waves of EO companies.Satelligence's Website: https://satelligence.com/Arjen's Twitter:  https://twitter.com/arjenvrielink---[ 01:05 ] : Arjen's story[ 03:48 ] : Overview of Satelligence[ 05:53 ] : Four waves of Earth observation companies[ 13:30 ] : Satelligence's tech stack[ 20:13 ] Challenges with using satellite imagery[ 27:39 ] : Open-source vs proprietary IP [ 31:20 ] : Solving the challenges[ 39:20 ] :Navigating the funding challenge[ 44:02 ] : Roadmap for Satelligence[ 48:08 ] : Arjen's most controversial take on EO[ 49:54 ] : Outlook for EO

Welcome to episode #50. This is a special one and it is been in the making for a while!Today, I am speaking with Simonetta Cheli, the Director of Earth Observation Programmes at the European Space Agency (or ESA).November is an important month for ESA as the Ministerial Council is coming up shortly, scheduled on the 22nd and 23rd of November 2022 in Paris. The Ministerial Council is the meeting that happens once in three years, where ESA's Member States, Associate States and Cooperating States come together to make important decisions on the future of ESA programmes and missions.In this episode, Simonetta and I discuss the proposal from the Earth Observation Directorate at ESA and what is on the table as well as touch on topics such as commercialisation and international cooperation.- ESA's EO Proposal: https://esamultimedia.esa.int/docs/corporate/CM22_EO.pdf- ESA's  Ministerial Council: https://vision.esa.int/cm22/- ESA's Vision: https://vision.esa.int/- Simonetta's Twitter: https://twitter.com/simonettacheli---[ 01:23 ] : Simonetta's background and experience at ESA[ 04:42 ] : What's on the table for Earth Observation at the ministerial?[ 11:08 ] : Commercialisation and ESA's InCubed programme[ 13:35 ] : ESA's role in the exploitation of EO data[ 17:03 ] : International collaboration for EO at ESA[ 21:26 ] : Simonetta's message to the EO community[ 22:48 ] : Wrap-up

In this episode, I speak with Paul Counet, Head of Strategy and International Relations at EUMETSAT.EUMETSAT (or)  The European Organization for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites is an intergovernmental organisation with 30 Member States in Europe, with an objective to establish, maintain and exploit European systems of operational meteorological satellites. EUMETSAT is one of the key actors that is responsible for maintaining a global meteorological satellite observing system coordinated with a number of other countries.It is safe to say that EUMETSAT's activities have led to millions of lives being saved and billions of euros of economic damage being avoided, thanks to the data collected by their satellites.In this episode, Paul and I talk about EUMETSAT, their core activities, their relationship with other European organisations and their relationship with other countries, about Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) satellites, the global gaps in weather observations, the role of the private sector and more.MTG: https://www.eumetsat.int/meteosat-third-generation---01:31: Overview of EUMETSAT04:56: Satellite missions of EUMETSAT16:34: The relationship with ESA and ECMWF19:19: Relationships with global weather agencies (US, China)27:15: About Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) and its impact35:56: Gaps in observations and the role of the private sector49:20: Importance of communication in weather 52:52 Wrap-up

Today, I have two guests on the podcast - Pierrick Poulenas, co-founder and CEO of Picterra along with Pascal van Dalen, the Chief Growth Officer. Picterra is an Earth observation startup based in Switzerland, providing a platform to train, deploy, and manage geospatial models at scale. Picterra sits at what I call the "Distribution" layer of Earth observation, allowing users to make sense of geospatial data and operationalise it within their organisations. I have been following them for many years and they have an interesting evolution.In this episode, we talk about Picterra's story, their strategy, the meaning of geospatial MLOps, how they resist the temptation to verticalise and build applications, the state of Earth observation and more.[Thanks to Picterra for sponsoring this episode]---[01:05]: Intro[03:38]: An overview of Picterra[10:42]: Picterra's business model and customers[15:12]: Picterra's pricing model[21:06]: Partnerships and go-to-market strategy [24:26]: What is Geospatial MLOps?[30:45]: What's on the roadmap for Picterra?[34:36]: Why does Picterra not verticalise?[40:12]: The state of Earth observation: Whether we need for big data, the entry of big tech and the advisory service layer[47:01]: Wrap-up

Today, I am speaking with James Slifierz, from SkyWatch. For those who don't know, SkyWatch is a Canadian startup that aims to remove the barriers to accessing commercial satellite imagery, through two offerings - one called EarthCache that is a one-stop shop to acquire commercial satellite data and the other called TerraStream that provides an ideal way for satellite operators to go-to-market with their data.SkyWatch is one of my favourite EO companies. I have been following SkyWatch for years and I am a big proponent of what they are aiming to achieve in the market. I think James has a very fascinating, yet concrete vision both for his company and the EO industry. So, I had him on the podcast to talk about all things SkyWatch and EO.In this episode, James and I discuss the origins of SkyWatch, their attempt to build an API for commercial satellite data, surprising learnings acquired over the years, the state of EO and whether we need more data, the significance of the distribution layer and more.This was one of my favourite conversations on the podcast - we touched on a number of topics and if you are an enthusiast of EO like we both are, you will enjoy this episode. -----01:31: James’ background and the origins of SkyWatch13:57: Partnering with satellite data providers16:57: The most surprising learnings from building EarthCache, an API for satellite imagery23:46: The market intelligence acquired by SkyWatch32:48: TerraStream: SkyWatch’s product aimed at EO satellite operators45:16: The lack of focus on the data distribution layer in EO49:47: Too much EO data or do we need more data?53:15: The advisory service layer and how SkyWatch fits into this thesis58:50: James’ controversial take on the state of EO and what can we do better01:02:30: Wrap-up