Combination Unites Vehicle-Level and Mission-Level Autonomy So Operators Can Delegate Authority with Confidence at the Speed and Scale Contested Space Demands

LEESBURG, Va., Nov. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Trusted Space, a Washington Harbour Partners portfolio company that develops mission autonomy and real-time command and control software for national security space operations, announced today its acquisition of Falcon ExoDynamics, an El Segundo-based developer of spacecraft-level autonomy, rendezvous and proximity operations, and integrated hardware and software for dynamic space operations. The combination brings together Falcon ExoDynamics’ deterministic, bounded autonomy at the vehicle level with Trusted Space’s mission-level autonomy, intent modeling, and command-and-control capabilities to create an end-to-end platform that enables authority to be delegated to autonomous systems through structured, explainable steps. Defense and intelligence customers will be able to coordinate autonomous assets across space domain awareness, battle management command and control (“BMC2”), and dynamic space operations, enabling them to move from detection to decision at machine speed while maintaining human oversight and final decision-making authority.

Autonomy in space is no longer optional. The U.S. Space Force is by far the smallest branch of the U.S. military, with roughly 15,000 Guardians responsible for defending the largest and fastest-growing warfighting domain. Its leaders have stated publicly that constellations numbering in the hundreds cannot be operated the way legacy systems were, that autonomous systems capable of sensing, deciding, and acting at machine speed will define the domain by 2040, and that autonomy and automated response should now be treated as baseline requirements rather than optional enhancements. At the same time, China is fielding counterspace capabilities at a pace intended to achieve parity or better, while the United States has publicly acknowledged on-orbit space control weapons and is building a force designed to maneuver rather than remain stationary. In that environment, operational delay, not programmatic risk, represents the greatest vulnerability.

The barrier to adopting autonomy in space has never been whether a spacecraft can maneuver or dock. It is whether operators can trust what the system will do next. Historically, vehicle autonomy and mission software have been developed in separate silos by different companies, using different definitions of autonomy and lacking a structured mechanism for transferring authority between them. The result has been fragmented autonomy, slow delegation, and limited operational adoption. Trusted Space closes that gap by architecting autonomy as a unified system: deterministic, bounded behavior at the vehicle layer; intent-aware coordination across assets at the mission layer; and a structured delegation framework connecting the two. This approach enables operators to extend authority incrementally, understand why the system takes action, and intervene at any point.

“To meet the demands of complex space missions, autonomy must be architected to operate at multiple levels,” said Robert MacMillan, President & CEO of Trusted Space. “Falcon ExoDynamics has spent years solving some of the hardest problems in vehicle-level autonomy, and its team shares our commitment to the national security mission. Together, we will deliver autonomy that operators trust, from individual spacecraft to full constellation orchestration, enabling mission success at operational scale and speed. By combining our capabilities, we will bring this holistic autonomy solution to more customers, faster.”

“When we invested in Trusted Space, we backed a team with a mission-first ethos and the deep trust of the customers responsible for our nation’s most critical space missions,” said Mina Faltas, Founder & CEO at Washington Harbour Partners. “Falcon ExoDynamics shares that identity and adds complementary engineering depth at the vehicle level. Space is the largest domain our nation defends, protected by its smallest military service, and it is becoming more contested every day. That equation only works with autonomy that operators trust. This combination closes the gap by giving Guardians and the Intelligence Community the ability to delegate with confidence, make decisions faster, and prevail in a contested domain.”

“Our mission has always been to deliver disruptive, asymmetric space solutions with speed and quality, and to prove them on orbit rather than on a slide,” said Michael Klug, CEO of Falcon ExoDynamics. “Joining Trusted Space connects our vehicle-level autonomy and modular, open-systems architecture to the mission layer where authority is delegated and operations are orchestrated. Together we can transition capabilities from development to operations faster, attract exceptional engineering talent, and provide our customers with a true end-to-end autonomy partner.”

The transaction follows Washington Harbour Partners’ 2025 strategic growth investment in Trusted Space and further strengthens the firm’s platform for software-defined technologies and IP-enabled services supporting the next generation of space architecture. The combined company maintains a presence in El Segundo, the National Capital Region, and Colorado, with cleared facilities and a culture built to execute classified missions for the Department of War and Intelligence Community. Falcon ExoDynamics also leads the industry Handle Alliance, whose open bus-to-payload interface standard is a Space Force Modular Open Systems Approach pathfinder. This positions the combined company alongside the Space Force’s stated drive for rapid integration through open standards and its emphasis on designing systems for interoperability from the outset rather than treating integration as an afterthought.

About Trusted Space
Trusted Space, founded in 2019, is a defense technology company that delivers advanced autonomy and battlespace management software for the space domain. The company develops trusted autonomy solutions, real-time image processing capabilities, space mission engineering services, and space operations and training solutions that enable machine-speed perception, decision-making, and action across modern space architectures supporting the Department of War, the Intelligence Community, and commercial customers. Trusted Space empowers mission success across space reconnaissance and surveillance, dynamic space operations, space-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), and command-and-control (C2) systems.

For more information, please visit https://www.trustedspace.com/

About Falcon ExoDynamics
Founded in 2017 and based in El Segundo, California, Falcon ExoDynamics is a prime contractor and mission partner providing mission engineering, onboard spacecraft autonomy, and integrated software and hardware payload products and services to aerospace companies and government customers across the full program lifecycle. The company is focused on delivering disruptive, asymmetric space mission solutions that leverage state-of-the-art commercial technologies, with high-quality, fast-turnaround engineering.

For more information, please visit https://www.falconexodynamics.com/

About Washington Harbour Partners
Washington Harbour Partners, based in Washington DC, is a private investment firm that brings a fresh approach to investors and founders, providing flexibility and deep operational expertise at all stages of the investment cycle – from growth equity to control buyouts. The firm has deep domain expertise in the areas of national security, defense technologies, cybersecurity, enterprise software, and technology-enabled services. In 2026, Washington Harbour Partners ranked sixth among all defense technology investors, and the highest ranked non-government affiliated firm to also fund private equity investments, in the Silicon Valley Defense Group’s NatSec100 report, investing in 16 of the companies named to the list.

For more information, please visit https://washingtonharbour.com/

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SOURCE Trusted Space