Amazon Leo

In July 2020, the Federal Communications Commission authorized Amazon to deploy 3,236 satellites into low Earth orbit. Deployment is planned in five phases, with service expected to begin after the first 578 satellites reach orbit. Under the original terms of its license, Amazon must launch and operate half of the constellation by July 30, 2026, and the remainder by July 30, 2029. However, the FCC waived the July 2026 deadline in early June 2026.

To support the constellation, Amazon has purchased 92 rocket launches from United Launch Alliance, ArianeGroup, and Blue Origin—the latter founded by Amazon executive chairman Jeff Bezos—for a total cost exceeding US$10 billion. In 2023, it also purchased three launches from SpaceX, operator of the competing Starlink network.

As of July 2026, Amazon Leo has launched 396 production satellites.

History

Founding to prototype launch

In April 2019, Amazon officials announced that they would fund and deploy Project Kuiper, a large satellite constellation, to provide broadband internet service. Officials said the project would "offer broadband service through partnerships with other companies", including to "tens of millions of people who lack basic access to broadband internet", although it remains unclear whether service will be offered directly to consumers.

The president of Kuiper Systems, Rajeev Badyal, was a former vice president of SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet constellation. Fired by Elon Musk in 2018, Badyal soon afterward started Kuiper along with other ex-SpaceX employees.

In December 2019, it was reported that Amazon was asking the FCC to waive requirements (e.g., to have applied by 2016) that SpaceX and OneWeb had to follow in order to get their large satellite internet constellations licensed.

In July 2020, Amazon received FCC authorization to orbit a constellation of 3,236 satellites, provided, among other conditions, that they not interfere with previously authorized satellite ventures. Company officials said they would spend $10 billion on the effort. It was expected to take up to a decade to fully deploy all 3,236 planned satellites.

In December 2020, Amazon unveiled a low-cost flat-panel user terminal antenna for the Project Kuiper system. It is a Ka-band phased-array antenna that is much smaller than traditional designs for antennas that operate at 17–30 GHz. The antenna will be ~30 cm (12 in) in width and is expected to support up to 400 megabits per second of data bandwidth at less than 20% of the cost of traditional state-of-the-art flat-panel antennas. Amazon also announced that they intend to be "launch agnostic" and would not plan to exclusively use launch capacity from Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin company, but rather were open to launch capability offers from all providers.

In April 2021, Amazon announced that it had contracted with ULA for nine launches of Kuiper satellites on Atlas V launch vehicles from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, and noted that it will "continue to explore all options" for launching the remainder of the satellites.

In April 2022, Amazon announced contracts with three launch providers for 83 launches over the next decade. They include 18 launches of the European Ariane 6, 12 launches of Blue Origin's New Glenn (with options for 15 additional flights), and 38 launches on the Vulcan launch vehicle from United Launch Alliance.

In August 2023, a lawsuit was filed by an Amazon shareholder, Cleveland Bakers and Teamsters Pension Fund, against the company claiming the Amazon board of directors acted in bad faith when procuring the approximately $10 billion in launch contracts for the constellation, which amounted to Amazon's second-largest capital expenditure to date. Contracts to Blue Origin, owned by Bezos, amounted to 45% of the total expenditure. The suit suggests that animosity between Bezos and SpaceX founder Elon Musk may have precluded Amazon from contracting SpaceX's Falcon 9 vehicle, which is flight proven and potentially more cost-effective.

Two initial prototype satellites, "KuiperSat-1" and "KuiperSat-2" launched on October 6, 2023, on an Atlas V rocket operated by United Launch Alliance from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The mission was deemed a success and both satellites were deorbited.

Post prototype launch

In December 2023, it was announced that Amazon had secured three Kuiper launches aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9. These flew in July, August and October 2025, carrying 24 satellites each.

The Vulcan Centaur rocket launched for the first time on January 8, 2024, clearing the way for the future ordered launches of Kuiper Systems satellites. Ariane 6 made its maiden flight on July 9, 2024.

The first 27 production satellites were launched on April 28, 2025, aboard an Atlas V rocket. The company said that it had successfully established communications with all of the satellites.

On November 12, 2025, Amazon announced that Project Kuiper would get rebranded as Amazon Leo, with a public beta waitlist also being revealed. Early service is anticipated in 2026.

In January 2026, Amazon filed a request with the FCC to extend the deadline to launch half of their first generation constellation by July 2026. It disclosed that it had purchased 10 additional Falcon 9 and 12 additional New Glenn launches. In June 2026, the FCC waived the deadline for launching half of the constellation, but will be "temporarily demoting the spectral priority of satellites launched after the relevant July 2026 milestone deadline, until and unless Amazon Leo builds those satellites at a faster pace" to encourage Amazon to deploy the constellation as rapidly as possible.

In April 2026, Amazon announced an agreement to acquire Globalstar, with the acquisition intended to close in 2027.

In July 2026, Amazon Leo signed an agreement with South African internet service provider Herotel to introduce its first satellite-internet service in Africa. Herotel planned to use the constellation to offer a residential broadband service named evry, with commercial availability expected in South Africa in 2027. The service was intended principally for rural communities and smaller towns beyond the economical reach of conventional fibre and wireless networks.

On September 10, 2026, Amazon announced it had an additional 6 launches from Arianespace, increasing the total number of Leo missions aboard Ariane 6 from 18 to 24.