We’re beyond excited to announce that Matt Long is joining Astranis as General Counsel. We have a complex business that is growing fast. In just a few years we’ll be deploying satellites for dozens of countries around the globe and executing on multiple, large government contracts. So it was time to find a legal executive of Matt’s caliber — and it’s hard to imagine a better fit for this role.

Matt joins Astranis after a few years building his family in Austin, Texas, a well-earned break after 13 years helping scale Palantir. He joined Palantir in 2009 when the company had just ~100 employees, and ultimately helped the business grow to over 3,000 people. Matt started at the company in a Business Development role, but as the first lawyer (he earned his Bachelors from Stanford and his JD at Harvard Law), he took on more and more legal work over time.

As General Counsel of Palantir, Matt was a member of the executive team and was responsible for managing commercial and government contracting, worldwide legal and regulatory affairs, privacy engineering, compliance, equity compensation, and human resources. He helped lead the company through contracting for their first $1.3 billion of government contracts, and drove a successful lawsuit that opened the door to commercial startups fairly competing for large government contracts. Matt ultimately helped the company traverse their Direct Public Listing, taking the company public where it would ultimately exceed a $50 billion valuation.

At Astranis, Matt will fill a very similar role. (Hopefully without the lawsuits.) Astranis is poised to launch four more MicroGEO satellites this year, and 100 satellites by 2030 — a dramatic expansion of our operational scope and complexity in an inherently international business environment. The Department of Defense has also shown a noted interest in extending the “proliferation” concept beyond LEO to GEO, securing American warfighters by ensuring they are not reliant on any single on-orbit asset. Astranis expects to bid for (and win) multiple, large government contracts over the coming months and years, and Matt’s deep experience in such matters should prove invaluable.

When I met Matt, I was of course immediately aware that he checked all conceivable boxes: deep experience at a fast-growing company; public offering experience; defense experience; and so on. But what really stuck with me was simply Matt’s undeniable intelligence and horsepower, paired with his unassuming and energetic demeanor. 

As for why Matt joined Astranis, I think it’s worth hearing that straight from him:

“I am thrilled to join Astranis at such an exciting point in its journey. The company is uniquely positioned to fulfill our vital mission to connect the unconnected while also strengthening the U.S through our growing federal business.

As I've gotten to know John and the team, I recognize the same mission-driven engineering excellence that inspired my early years at Palantir. Astranis' innovative business aligns perfectly with my passion for transformative legal work. I look forward to working with the team as we push the boundaries of what’s possible in the space industry."

Welcome to the team, Matt. We’re excited to help you become a bonafide space lawyer.