Mynaric USA makes LA home

Mynaric Executive Board member Bulent Altan, who joined Mynaric in March 2019 after 12 years at SpaceX, will lead the relocated U.S. operation concurrent with his board duties, and divide his time between the U.S. and Germany, according to a company press release. “The decision to relocate to Los Angeles is based not only on the potential market for laser communication products needed by large U.S. constellation builders ꟷ many of whom have offices on the West Coast – but also on California’s record in attracting and retaining the world-class talent we require to complement the excellent team we have built in Germany,” Altan said. The move represents a lean into the company’s 2020 U.S. expansion plan, to coincide with Mynaric’s airborne and space laser communication products completing qualification in the next few months, the release said. One of the initial tasks for the relocated team will include developing electronics and software sourced solely from within the U.S., for those U.S. companies and organizations who wish to deploy larger-scale laser communication solutions. Mynaric was founded in 2009 in Bavaria. Mynaric USA was established as an independent subsidiary in 2017. In 2018, the company was inducted into the Space Technology Hall of Fame for its work on transferring laser communication technology developed for research purposes to commercial applications.