The Deal That Shouldn't Have Happened
The FAA just handed Air Space Intelligence, a Boston startup backed by Andreessen Horowitz, an $875 million, 12-year contract to build the SMART system (Strategic Management of Airspace, Routes, and Trajectories) — essentially replacing the air traffic control backbone that routes 45,000 daily flights across U.S. airspace. Initial deployment targets fall 2026, with full rollout in 12-24 months.
This is the kind of procurement that makes defense contractors file protests and senators ask pointed questions. A startup — not Raytheon, not Lockheed, not even Palantir (who was in the running) — won the contract to modernize arguably the most safety-critical infrastructure in civilian aviation. The decision is either visionary or reckless, and which one depends entirely on whether Air Space Intelligence can scale their airline dispatch tool to handle the entire national airspace without anyone dying.
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