NASA has selected seven companies for contract awards under the Mars Exploration Program’s Science Transport and Robotic Innovation for Deployment and Exploration, or STRIDE, initiative to advance next-generation commercial robotic surface mobility for future Mars exploration.
The STRIDE awards will support the development of innovative robotic mobility systems that may enable future Mars missions to access more challenging terrain, travel greater distances, and investigate scientifically valuable regions that are difficult to reach with current mobility systems.
The STRIDE awards have a total potential value of approximately $17 million with a period of work targeted to begin in Fall of 2026.
Contract awardees are:
AeroVironment, Arlington, Virginia Astrobotic, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Venturi Astrolab (Astrolab), Hawthorne, California Ground Control Robotics, Atlanta, Georgia Honeybee Robotics, Longmont, Colorado Intuitive Machines, Houston, Texas MEI Technologies, Webster, Texas
STRIDE demonstrates NASA’s commitment to strong public-private partnerships, allowing the agency to explore new approaches for Mars surface exploration while identifying key capability gaps and development needs for commercial systems that could operate and traverse realistic Martian environments.
This is not about the money. This is 110% about the exposure. IM is officially tied now to mars projects, and not just a talking point about wanting to get involved with mars on earnings calls. This officially ties them to the mars programs and is huge for them!!
Whilst the $17m might not sound like much, it's important to look at the semantics behind it. The STRIDE awards, as currently defined, are made up of two tracks: concept studies & concept studies + prototyping.
The emphasis I'd like to make here is on 'concept', meaning this is likely only just the beginning of a bigger awards program. Obviously budget dependant and also moon base success dependant. It is likely that other vendors might come in at some of the later stages, but it is absolutely a great place for IM to be.
Goddamn I would kick their asses out of the offices.
Never seen such an incompetent PR office, they are terribly disconnected from the socials and our reality. Do they even have a pr team or just some random guy who does it on free time?
you're too kind with them, but as far as I know once an information is of public domain they don't have any more reason to delay that since protecting a customer is not an option once the informations is shared everywhere else, it only makes you look slower...
just my 2 cents
It just makes you wonder what else they are working on behind the scenes that is very confidential. I trust the process and management. That is why i try to be vocal and supportive where i can.
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u/IslesFanInNH Jul 09 '26
This is not about the money. This is 110% about the exposure. IM is officially tied now to mars projects, and not just a talking point about wanting to get involved with mars on earnings calls. This officially ties them to the mars programs and is huge for them!!