Let’s get to know more about the LEONSEGS team!
This time we talked with Luis Saturnino, from LEONSEGS partner Aistech Space.
Why did Aistech Space join this project? What kind of potential did you see in LEONSEGS?
Aistech Space joined LEONSEGS to contribute to its strategic objective of scaling access to its high-resolution thermal data services and reaching end-users in a much broader and more automated way. By joining this project, Aistech gains exposure to advanced ground segment architectures, harmonised interfaces, and automated planning tools that will enable it to connect more efficiently with customers and partners across Europe and beyond. LEONSEGS provides a framework where New Space operators like Aistech can access market opportunities that are otherwise difficult to reach individually as well as customers are more familiarized with thermal images.
As a provider of high-resolution thermal data, what unique new applications or insights does LEONSEGS’s federated system enable for Aistech Space that were previously impossible in a fragmented data environment?
LEONSEGS allows Aistech Space to integrate its VNIR and LWIR data into a wider federated system where these datasets can be combined with information from other missions and external archives. This opens the door to new products and analytics that were previously unfeasible due to fragmentation of the EO data ecosystem. Through the project, Aistech also benefits from enhanced efficiencies in the ground segment domain, drawing from the experience of a large legacy company like GMV, and from adapting its infrastructures to the latest interoperability and automation standards. Finally, the participation helps identify market and technology gaps that can inspire new service opportunities in precision agriculture, environmental monitoring, and security.
What is the unique role of Aistech Space in the LEONSEGS project?
Aistech acts as the New Space representative within the consortium, providing both a technological and operational testbed that brings realism to the project demonstrations. Its role is to supply real thermal and optical data for the test campaigns in Spain and Austria and to emulate a federated New Space player through the development of its own ground segment simulator. This allows the LEONSEGS architecture to be validated in a near-operational environment, exercising end-to-end workflows; from tasking to data acquisition and product generation. Aistech also contributes its innovative perspective as a small but agile satellite operator, helping ensure that the LEONSEGS architecture remains relevant and accessible to new entrants in the market.
How will LEONSEGS revolutionise the business landscape for Earth Observation (EO) data? What unique value will the platform bring?
LEONSEGS will transform the EO business landscape by creating a federated ecosystem where both established and emerging operators collaborate seamlessly under a GSaaS model. For Aistech, this means participating in a truly European marketplace capable of offering complex EO products derived from multiple sensors and providers, all orchestrated automatically through a common interface. This model reduces operational costs, accelerates response times, and unlocks new business models where data and processing capabilities can be shared or accessed on demand.
Any final thoughts or comments on the project’s long-term expectations for sustainable decision-making?
In the long term, Aistech expects LEONSEGS to serve as a user-driven ecosystem where the opinions and feedback of potential end-users guide the evolution of the platform and its services. By integrating stakeholder engagement and continuous evaluation, LEONSEGS will ensure that its federated tools remain practical, efficient, and aligned with real-world decision-making needs. Aistech sees this collaborative and iterative approach as key to ensuring that Europe’s New Space initiatives grow sustainably and deliver tangible societal and economic value.
