NEW YORK, March 5, 2026, 05:44 EST
- AST SpaceMobile climbed roughly 13% in the latest session, following news of its partnership with Canada’s Telus.
- Telus is looking to put money into ground infrastructure and aims to pick up an equity stake, with service rollout eyed for late 2026.
- AXIAN Telecom has inked a deal to bring AST’s direct-to-device satellite network into its Yas markets across Africa, though the rollout still hinges on necessary approvals.
AST SpaceMobile Inc (ASTS) surged 13% Wednesday after Telus of Canada agreed to provide satellite-based texting, calls, and data in underserved regions—and said it would take a stake in the U.S. firm. Shares ended at $104.89, with trading volume hitting nearly 20.8 million. 1
The tie-up drops right as mobile operators race to secure “direct-to-device” (D2D) coverage — satellites linking up with ordinary smartphones when cell towers can’t reach. What was once just a demo is now a real line item in carrier budgets, and investors are rushing into whichever firms they bet can pull it off first.
AST landed a deal this week with AXIAN Telecom, the company behind the Yas brand, aiming to expand in Africa. “Partnering with AST SpaceMobile gives us the ability to close that gap,” said AXIAN CEO Hassan Jaber. AST president Scott Wisniewski described Africa as “a critical part of the global connectivity landscape,” adding that service will launch after securing regulatory approvals in each country.
Telus is aiming to launch the service in late 2026, saying it will work on regular smartphones without any special gear, thanks to AST’s low Earth orbit satellites—closer to the planet, so less lag than with traditional, higher-flying satellites. “We’re eliminating connectivity gaps across Canada,” said Nazim Benhadid, CTO at Telus networks. Chris Ivory, AST’s chief commercial officer, pointed to the country’s “vast geography, remote industries and dispersed communities,” calling universal connectivity both a challenge and a necessity. No financial terms were shared by the companies. 2
Christopher Schoell at UBS bumped his target on AST SpaceMobile to $85 from $43, sticking with a Neutral call—despite shares already trading higher. “The firm expects revenues to multiply as the commercial launch nears,” he said in a note to investors, according to TheFly. 3
Taiwan Mobile and AST SpaceMobile have inked a cooperation memorandum targeting direct-to-cell connectivity using AST’s LEO satellites, Light Reading reports. The partnership spans network integration, spectrum planning, and regulatory work. “LEO satellite technology can support communication in remote, mountainous areas,” said Jamie Lin, president of Taiwan Mobile. 4
AST’s latest agreements land it in a sector where telecom carriers aren’t sticking with just one space provider anymore. Earlier this week, France’s Orange said it would team up with AST and Satellite Connect Europe—a Vodafone-backed group—on direct-to-device trials in Romania by late 2026. Those tests will also bring in partners like Eutelsat, SES, Starlink and Telesat. Orange, for its part, has cast the competition as a race against both Starlink and Amazon’s soon-to-come low Earth orbit network. 5
AST SpaceMobile claims its satellite network will deliver cellular broadband to areas where traditional towers can’t reach, all through regular, unmodified phones. For 2025, LSEG data on Reuters shows the company posted $70.918 million in revenue, while net losses totaled $341.94 million. 6
Timelines are razor-thin. Everything rides on regulators, spectrum deals, and having the right mix of satellites plus ground gateways to keep calls and data flowing. Miss a beat and the rollout turns straight into a cash crunch.
Investors want to see concrete rollout dates, plus evidence that those carrier deals actually deliver paying traffic—mere memorandums won’t cut it. Right now, the trade is pinned to execution set for 2026, a process that tends to get messy in space.
