Myriota wins $5.48 million Defence Innovation Hub contract

The Defence Innovation Hub has awarded a $5.48 million contract to Adelaide-based space industry company Myriota, a leader in secure, low-cost and long-battery-life satellite connectivity. The contract to expand the Australian Defence Force’s (ADF) Internet of Military Things (IoMT) will result in military assets tagged with ruggedised devices to provide location data through direct-to-orbit technology from anywhere on Earth. This will give the Australian military a precise view of tagged asset locations with the data then visualised via a web application.

Minister for Defence Industry Melissa Price said the contract would contribute to growing a robust, resilient and innovative industrial base for space technologies in Australia. 

“Sovereign, space-enabled capabilities are critical to the future of Defence,” Minister Price said.

“This innovation could enable the secure transfer of Defence data from almost anywhere on Earth.”

The investment is part of the federal government’s Defence Innovation Hub which aims to invest in innovative technologies that can enhance Defence capability.

Myriota CEO and co-founder Dr. Alex Grant said that the collaboration will build on Myriota’s strong partnership with the Australian defence industry.

“Today’s announcement with the Defence Innovation Hub marks the continuation of an important, ongoing relationship between the Australian Defence Force and Myriota that began some years ago,” Dr. Grant said.

“We are thrilled to continue our partnership with the Australian defence industry in the IoMT arena, and to leverage our secure, private and sovereign technology to address specific use cases alongside the Defence Innovation Hub.”

Minister for Finance and Senator for South Australia Simon Birmingham congratulated Myriota on securing a contract that had the potential to further launch Australia’s Defence communications network into the space age. 

“Taking advantage of the opportunities leading space technology offers will not only support our Defence capability but advance research in other vital industries,” Minister Birmingham said. 

The multi-million dollar contract comes just a week after Myriota announced a partnership with Spire, a US-based global provider of space-based data, analytics, and space services. Through this partnership Myriota’s network will expand using Spire’s low-Earth orbit nano-satellites equipped with a range of software-defined radios (SDR) that let partners test, deploy, operate, and scale custom applications. The partnership will also allow Myriota to expand their existing network coverage in North America, Australia, and New Zealand and extend to additional markets, including Europe.

Myriota was founded in 2015 by Australian-based entrepreneurs Dr. Alex Grand and Dr. Dave Haley to revolutionise the Internet of Things (IoT) and has a growing portfolio of more than 60 granted patents. The company is based on Lot Fourteen in Adelaide, Australia and has support from major Australian and international investors such as Boing, IAG, SigTel Innov8 as well as former Australian PM, Malcolm Turnbull.

Security and privacy

Security and privacy on data in transit is a critical requirement for IoMT applications. Myriota boasts that it would take approximately 165 billion years for a single incorrect authentication to occur. All bulk data carried over satellite-to-ground station links are encrypted and authenticated, employing a zero-trust security posture.

Zero-trust is a strategic security concept to help prevent data breaches by eliminating the concept of trust from within an organisation’s network architecture. It is based on the security foundation that organisations should not automatically ‘trust’ anything inside or outside their perimeters. Instead, everything and anyone trying to connect to their systems must be verified before access is granted. That along with network segmentation, preventing lateral movement across networks, providing application layer threat prevention, and simplifying user-access control, forms the basis of a zero-trust environment.