If you have heard the name Bridgit Mendler, chances are that it is because she wrote and sang the hit song “Ready or not.” But the former Disney star is pursuing a slightly different career trajectory now after spending the last few years at the Massachussets Institute of Technology and Harvard Law School — as CEO of her own space technology startup. Massachusetts-based Northwood Aerospace does not build rockets or satellites, according to CNBC, rather, it aims to mass-produce ground stations. The large and circular antennas that connect to satellites in space are ground station. The company has raised about $6 million in funding from investors that include the Founders Fund, Andreessen Horowitz and Also Capital. Mendler is working on Northwood with her husband, Griffin Cleverly and head of software Shaurya Luthra, both of whom are cofounders. Expect the unexpected! So excited to announce our $6.3M seed led by @foundersfund and @a16z with participation from @CapitalAlso, @LongJourneyVC , @BoxGroup, @humbavc At @NorthwoodSpace we have our sights on building a data highway between earth and space. We are designing… — Bridgit Mendler (@bridgitmendler) February 19, 2024 The company aims to build satellite ground stations that are designed to be produced and deployed fast with an emphasis on flexibility. It will target services for satellites in low-Earth orbit initially for companies that do not want to or cannot build their own ground station networks. You could think of it like renting server space from Amazon Web Services or Microsoft — you get what you need without the capital expenditure needed to build and deploy your own hardware.
