Amazon Previews Its Satellite Service

Amazon Leo (formerly named Project Kuiper) began previewing a satellite internet service to select enterprise customers. A broader rollout is expected in 2026, and Amazon has announced the final production design of a new antenna.

The preview program enables enterprise customers to test Amazon Leo services and hardware, providing additional feedback to help tailor its offerings. Early participants include airline JetBlue, rural connectivity provider Vanu, and clean energy company Hunt Energy Network.

Amazon stated that its new Leo Ultra is the fastest commercial phased array antenna available, offering download rates of up to 1Gb/s and up to 400Mb/s upload. The antenna is powered by a custom silicon chip designed by Amazon Leo, using the company’s proprietary RF design and signal processing algorithms.

Amazon Leo offers two main private networking services. With Direct to AWS, cloud customers can connect to their workloads using a transit or direct connect gateway through a point-and-click interface on the Leo web console. The company stated the approach reduces latency and simplifies management.

Enterprises and telecoms service providers can also establish private network interconnects at major colocation facilities to connect remote locations directly to their data centers or core networks, reducing deployment time from months to days. Amazon Leo currently has 150 birds in orbit, intending to launch half of its planned total of 3,236 satellites by July 2026.