Category: 3. Business

The award has been presented annually since 2006 by the consultancy Agamus Consult in collaboration with the specialist magazine ‘Automobil Produktion’. It recognises manufacturing sites that have made outstanding contributions to lean, modern, and digitally integrated production. Under the motto “Learning from the Best”, the initiative aims to highlight how the European automotive industry is harnessing the potential of lean principles and digitalisation to drive innovation and efficiency in production.

Porsche Leipzig: Focus on quality and cost-effectiveness

The Leipzig plant stood out in particular for its lean, digitally networked and highly automated production processes. “Porsche Leipzig impresses with its consistent application of lean principles, digital intelligence and innovative automation – always with a clear focus on quality and cost-effectiveness. This makes the plant a worthy winner of the Automotive Lean Production Award 2025 in the OEM category,” says Dr Werner Geiger, Managing Director of Agamus Consult.

“A lean, flexible and digitally supported production system is essential to our innovative strength and competitiveness,” says Albrecht Reimold, Member of the Executive Board for Production and Logistics at Porsche AG. “From the very beginning, the Porsche Leipzig plant has stood for transformation and adaptability. Today, three powertrain concepts – petrol, hybrid and fully electric – are produced in a mixed model flow on a single production line. I am personally delighted that our ability to master this high level of complexity has been recognised with this award.”

Consistent application of lean principles

Production at Porsche is based on the consistent application of lean principles to enhance efficiency, quality and flexibility. In addition to the use of cutting-edge technologies, key elements include actively involving employees in shaping a continuous improvement process and adopting a holistic approach to conserving resources.

“The Automotive Lean Production Award is a great honour for us,” says Gerd Rupp, Chairman of the Management Board of Porsche Leipzig GmbH. “The jury’s recognition not only acknowledges our consistent process optimisation, but also the Leipzig team and its outstanding collective performance. For us, the award is both a mark of recognition and a source of motivation to continue on our path with determination.”

The award ceremony will take place at the 19th Automotive Lean Production Congress on 25 and 26 November 2025 at Volkswagen Poznań in Poland. Finalists in each award category are nominated based on submitted questionnaires. The awards are then presented following in-depth on-site evaluations: during shopfloor walkthroughs and discussions with plant representatives, the questionnaire results are validated and explored in greater detail.

The Porsche Leipzig plant began operations in 2002 as the second Porsche production site alongside the company’s headquarters in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen. Today, it is home to the production of the Macan and Panamera model lines. Until 2017, the Cayenne was built in Leipzig, and from 2003 to 2006, the legendary Carrera GT super sports car also rolled off the line. The site has received multiple accolades for its smart production and sustainable approach, including the “Lean and Green Management Award” in 2021 and the title “Factory of the Year” in 2023.

Micro RGB delivers exceptional colour accuracy with sub-100-micrometer LEDs, redefining the paradigm of ultra-premium displays

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today announced the official launch of its Micro RGB, the world’s first display to feature a micro-scale RGB LED backlight behind a large 115-inch screen. This breakthrough display establishes a new benchmark for colour accuracy, contrast and immersive viewing in the ultra-premium TV segment.

 

Samsung’s Micro RGB is built on Samsung’s proprietary Micro RGB Technology, which arranges individually controlled red, green and blue micro RGB LEDs — each less than 100µm in size — in an ultra-fine pattern behind the panel. Unlike conventional backlighting, the architecture enables precision control over each red, green and blue RGB LED.

 

 

“Micro RGB achieves unprecedented precision in the control of micrometre-sized RGB LEDs, raising the bar for colour accuracy and contrast in consumer displays,” said Taeyong Son, Executive Vice President and Head of the R&D Team of the Visual Display (VD) Business at Samsung Electronics. “With this launch, we’re setting the standard in the large-sized, ultra-premium TV market and reinforcing our commitment to next-generation display innovation.”

 

Micro RGB is powered by Samsung’s Micro RGB AI engine, which uses AI processing to fully optimise both picture and sound. This advanced technology analyses each frame in real time and automatically optimises colour output for a more lifelike and immersive picture. With this AI engine, Micro RGB Colour Booster Pro recognises scenes with dull colour tones and intelligently enhances colours across all content for a more vivid and immersive viewing experience.

 

Additionally, Samsung’s Micro RGB features Micro RGB Precision Colour, ensuring colours are delivered as intended for maximum accuracy and vividness, with precisely controlled colours that achieves 100% colour coverage of BT.2020, an international standard for colour accuracy established by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The display also received ‘Micro RGB Precision Colour’ certification from the Verband der Elektrotechnik (VDE), a leading German electrical engineering certification institute.

 

With Glare Free technology, Samsung’s Micro RGB minimises reflections, even in bright lighting conditions for a more comfortable and focused viewing experience. Apart from providing next-generation performance, Micro RGB’s super slim metal design achieves a sleek, minimalistic profile to compliment any interior.

 

With Samsung Vision AI integrated, Samsung’s Micro RGB brings the latest state-of-the-art AI technologies including AI picture and sound.

 

Samsung’s Micro RGB is also secured by Samsung Knox, the industry-leading security solution designed to protect users’ sensitive personal data, and Samsung’s 7-year free Tizen OS Upgrade program, which ensures ongoing software enhancements and long-term support.

 

After its debut in Korea, Samsung’s Micro RGB is set to launch in the U.S., with plans for a global rollout featuring a variety of sizes to meet customer needs.

 

To learn more about Micro RGB, visit, www.samsung.com.

 

Unmatched experience

Working on the Citijet project turned out to be an invaluable experience for everyone involved. 
“This is not something many 19-year-olds can put on their résumé,” says Novotný, emphasizing that the students had real autonomy: “Our instructor acted more like a liaison officer. If he saw something heading in the wrong direction, he’d step in — otherwise, the teachers let us handle everything ourselves.” 

That hands-on independence proved crucial in launching many of their careers. Today, Novotný works in technical support for Škoda Auto’s marketing vehicle presentations. His role keeps him involved with student-built cars as well — recently, for example, he helped set up Škoda vehicles for fan zones at the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship. “It’s a fun and dynamic job. We often work with one-off or non-standard vehicles, so we’re in close contact with engineers to figure out unique technical solutions,” he explains. 

For Jana Siudová, what once felt like a nightmare — presentations and communication — is now part of her everyday professional life. “We experienced a lot of stressful situations during the project, and that’s what taught me how to communicate — both within the team and externally,” she says, reflecting on the project’s impact. Today, those skills serve her well in the paint shop, where she handles supplier communications among other responsibilities. “Having prior experience definitely helped me during job interviews,” she adds.

2. Pillar Two

Pillar Two aims to create a fairer and more stable international tax system by protecting the tax base and curbing tax avoidance by multinational corporations. The publication of the Global Anti-Base Erosion Model Rules (Pillar Two) by the OECD in December 2021, outlined a global minimum taxation for international companies. It was implemented in Ireland in 2023 by way of Section 94 of the Finance (No.2) Act 2023’s insertion of (a new) Part 4A of the Taxes Consolidation Act (TCA) 1997.

The regulatory framework of Pillar Two stipulates that in certain cases, a top-up tax must be levied on large multinational companies. To determine this tax, the tax base ‘GloBE Income’ is set in relation to the predefined recorded taxes ‘Adjusted Covered Taxes’. This allows for the identification of the states in which a multinational group of companies (MNE Group) is subject to an effective tax rate of less than 15%. When a group of companies has an effective tax rate of less than 15% in a certain country, a top-up tax is generally levied at the level of the ultimate group company within the framework of the ‘Income Inclusion Rule’ (IIR) and ‘Qualified Domestic Top Up Tax’ (QDTT). In the event that the low taxation is not (or is not fully) compensated for by the IIR, the ‘Undertaxed Profits Rule’ (UTPR) applies, the aim being to raise the effective tax rate of multinational groups to a minimum of 15%. However, the top-up tax is only calculated after deduction of a substance-related discount, so that ultimately only the ‘excess’ profit is subject to taxation.

In the Irish context, Pillar Two’s target group and addressees are constituent entities located in Ireland that are part of an MNE Group. The prerequisite for designation as an MNE Group is that it achieves a turnover threshold of at least €750 million in the consolidated financial statements of the ‘Ultimate Parent Entity’ in at least two of the four previous financial years.

Though simple in theory, in practice, there is considerable scope for uncertainty as by implementing these rules into Irish tax law, new laws have been introduced (which require interpretation), and ordinary accounting is interrupted by the increased administrative burden of the minimum tax assessment. The starting point for the calculation of GloBE Income is the result of the included group entity according to the annual financial statements (before consolidations of intra-group transactions). The result of the included company is generally to be calculated in accordance with the accounting standard used in the preparation of the consolidated financial statements of the group parent company. In addition, there are various adjustments and voting rights which must be carefully exercised. For example, uncapitalized tax deferrals on loss carryforwards can lead to an effective tax rate of less than 15% in the year of loss offsetting. This would trigger the application of Pillar Two provisions, and so the delta between the actual tax rate and the 15% minimum rate would be subject to tax.

Some uncertainties can be preempted or clarified in Irish tax law by way of Revenue Opinions or Confirmations in accordance with Tax and Duty Manuals Part 37-00-40. However, the parameters for seeking a Revenue Opinion are relatively narrow. The question therefore arises as to whether Pillar Two risks can be insured.

Pillar Two coverage: W&I insurance or tax insurance

Two types of policies can be used to insure tax risks:

• Warranty and indemnity (W&I) insurance, which is used to insure unknown tax risks that emanate from events in the past. Placed in the context of a corporate transaction, the provisions of W&I insurance are linked to the warranties and indemnities provided by a seller to a buyer in a sale and purchase agreement. A significant part of the cover is protection in the event that a seller has not disclosed relevant information to a buyer, or for risks which have not been discovered in due diligence.
• Tax insurance is a form of standalone insurance that covers both known and unknown tax risks that have arisen in the past or may arise in the future. It has a much broader scope of application than W&I insurance and so can cover tax risks outside of an M&A transaction, e.g.  those risks for which a resolution might otherwise be sought by seeking a Revenue Opinion or Confirmation.

Insurer appetite — W&I Insurance

Approximately a third of insurers are willing to provide insurance cover for tax risks related to Pillar Two under a W&I insurance policy. Another third have clear reservations about providing coverage under W&I insurance, while the final third have yet to take a position. A list of reasons for the reluctance to offer tax cover under a W&I insurance policy includes:

• Pillar Two being typically outside of the scope of tax due diligence
• Lack of experience or lack of market consensus
• The accounting standard may lead to risk allocation uncertainty (in the context of de-/first-time consolidation)
• Liability for a third-party tax is difficult to assess without considering the position of both sides of a transaction
• Certain issues are outside of the control of the parties (such as which countries have implemented the rules)
• Uncertainty regarding political decision-making on Pillar Two implementation 

Insurer appetite — Tax insurance

The picture as relates to standalone tax insurance is clearer, and here there is a general willingness among insurers active in the Irish market to provide cover for Pillar Two risks. Insurers will consider areas such as:

• Risks around inconsistency in implementation and interpretation in national law or tax authority commentary.
• The Group’s use of Safe Harbor Rules.¹
• Risks related to the question of whether the non-consolidation of MNE Groups/units of companies is correct (this is likely to be particularly relevant at the time of first filing Pillar Two returns).

The majority of insurers surveyed will consider covering known Pillar Two risks under a tax insurance policy.

By Barbara Kollmeyer

Report says China telling companies not to buy Nvidia’s H20 chips

China is reportedly dissuading companies from purchasing Nvidia’s H20 chips.

Nvidia’s rock-and-a-hard place position on selling AI chips to China might have just worsened, as that country has reportedly told companies not to buy them.

Notifications have been sent to several firms, dissuading them from using the H20 processors, which Nvidia (NVDA)developed specifically for the Chinese market, Bloomberg reported Tuesday, citing sources. That especially applies to any company using the processors related to any government activity, the report added.

The purported development follows a Financial Times report on Sunday that Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices had worked out a deal to give 15% of revenue from China chip sales to the U.S. government in exchange for export licenses to sell in the country again.

Analysts have said that such a deal would set a dangerous precedent for those companies by paying the U.S. government to sell their own chips. Nvidia’s H20 and AMD’s MI308 chips were designed specifically to meet U.S. export rules, but were banned from selling those to China in April by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Read: Nvidia and AMD reportedly strike deals with Trump – but analysts see a ‘slippery slope’

Sources told Bloomberg that China’s apparent reluctance to allow companies to purchase Nvidia’s H20 chip also applies to AI accelerators from AMD, though the report said it’s not clear if the guidelines also apply to its MI308 chips.

Bloomberg reached out to China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Cyberspace Administration of China for comment, but neither responded. MarketWatch has reached out to Nvidia and AMD for comment.

Shares of both companies were tilting modestly lower ahead of Tuesday’s open, according to Robinhood. Monday saw Nvidia stock fall 0.3% and AMD lose 0.2%.

-Barbara Kollmeyer

This content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

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(Bloomberg) — US stock futures edged higher, mirroring the subdued tone across most asset classes, as investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of Tuesday’s inflation report that could reshape expectations for interest rate cuts.

Contracts for the S&P 500 rose 0.2%. The dollar traded flat. US Treasuries saw muted action with the yield on 10-year notes dropping less than one basis point to 4.28%. Gold ticked higher.

Europe’s Stoxx 600 index rose 0.3% as luxury names outperformed after Washington extended a trade truce with Beijing. A gauge for Asian stocks advanced 0.5%.

Tuesday’s inflation report arrives after traders in recent weeks ramped up expectations for Federal Reserve policy easing this year, aiming to bolster a labor market showing signs of softening. Still, investors remain attuned to the risk of persistent price pressures — particularly in the face of shifting US tariff policies — and the potential for a stagflationary backdrop.

Money markets show traders have priced in more than two rate cuts by December, with about an 80% probability of a quarter-point reduction next month. The core consumer price index, regarded as a measure of underlying inflation because it strips out volatile food and energy costs, is expected to show a 0.3% increase for July, compared to 0.2% in the previous month.

“If we get a continued slowdown in the employment picture, we expect the Fed to deliver rate cuts even in the face of sticky inflation,” said Mohit Kumar, chief European strategist at Jefferies International. “However, a sticky inflation picture will prevent an aggressive easing policy.”

Markets Live Strategist Garfield Reynolds says:

Global equities look nervous heading into Tuesday’s US CPI release, given the potential the data could disrupt expectations for Fed interest-rate cuts that have helped to prop up risk appetite in the US and beyond. Asian stocks may face a more perilous risk-reward set up given this local investor hesitance.

Meanwhile, China urged local companies to avoid using Nvidia’s H20 processors, particularly for government-related purposes. The move will complicate the chipmaker’s attempts to recoup billions in lost China revenue as well as the Trump administration’s unprecedented push to turn those sales into a US government windfall.

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.3% as of 8:28 a.m. London time S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.1% Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.5% The MSCI Emerging Markets Index was little changed Currencies

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1616 The Japanese yen fell 0.1% to 148.32 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.1956 per dollar The British pound rose 0.1% to $1.3446 Cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin rose 0.2% to $119,132.36 Ether rose 1.6% to $4,314.48 Bonds

The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.28% Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at 2.70% Britain’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to 4.60% Commodities

Brent crude rose 0.4% to $66.89 a barrel Spot gold rose 0.1% to $3,347.30 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

–With assistance from Anand Krishnamoorthy.

©2025 Bloomberg L.P.

The pilot, targeted at SME freight forwarders, is expected to make B2B payments more secure and transparent.

The pilot recently completed its first transaction at Hong Kong International Airport (managed by project partner AAHK), the world’s busiest cargo airport, seeing 4% of world air cargo trade pass through it each year. 

The initiative introduces a commercial card-based working capital solution to co-lading, where multiple firms consolidate their shipments into one container or bundle to reduce costs. Co-lading is often preferred by SMEs, who may not have the funds or the need to fill an entire container when exporting abroad. 

The solution would link payment flows to live shipment data from Hong Kong Airport, provided by AAHK’s Cargo Data Platform, enabling real-time pre-authorised payment flows backed by verified live cargo data. This would increase transparency in cross-border B2B payments, reducing fraud risk and speeding up a process that used to rely on manual reconciliation and was often delayed. 

“Together with our partners, we are helping SMEs to unlock liquidity, streamline reconciliation, and gain greater control over cash flow by integrating verified cargo data with financial flows,” said Paulina Leong, General Manager of Visa Hong Kong and Macau. The project would help free up working capital – often a key constraint for SMEs wanting to enter the export market – by giving buyers up to 85 days to pay while ensuring sellers are paid in as few as 3 days.

This is all the more important as SMEs face more and more challenges in an increasingly uncertain global environment, complicated by the recent tariffs and economic turmoil. 

“As the banking partner in this pilot, we harness real-time cargo data to verify delivery, facilitating pre-authorised payments by the bank that significantly reduce payment uncertainty and mitigate the risk of cross-border trade disputes,” said Ryan Fung, Deputy Chief Executive, Chief of Retail & Digital Strategy, Shanghai Commercial Bank.

“Access to timely payments and financing has long posed a challenge for co-loading freight forwarders, particularly in the dynamic and multi-faceted logistics sector,” said Rex Lai, Director, Forward by Norman Limited. This solution promises flexibility in sending and receiving funds, visibility, and assurance of punctuality. 

“As a freight forwarding company, this solution has significantly reduced our accounts receivable risks by leveraging invoice and flight data to secure payments,” said Raymond Wong, Group CEO, NAF Logistics Group.

During birth preparation workshops, a group of midwifery students in Croatia noticed a troubling pattern: many women lacked basic knowledge about their own bodies. For some, it was the first time they had encountered this information. 

Curious about the root cause, the students began to investigate further. Their research revealed that the problem started much earlier—in schools, where comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) was either poorly taught or entirely absent. 

This International Youth Day, we’re highlighting their inspiring response—an initiative that shows what it means for young people to lead change in their communities. 

Motivated to make a difference, the students secured a university grant and launched a project to bring CSE directly into the classrooms. Ensuring that young people receive the information they need to make informed choices about their bodies and their sexual and reproductive health. 

We sat down with two of the students behind the project, Klaudia Kamenar and Melani Žakić. Both were drawn to midwifery by a deep passion for women’s health and rights. Melani was interested in sociology and discovered that a lot of the issues she cared about were also central to midwifery. For Klaudia the motivation was clear, she realised that women are underrepresented in healthcare decision-making, and becoming a midwife was her way to speak up for those who are too often unheard. 

They are both about to finish their studies and preparing to enter the profession, but they have a striking passion for education and empowering future generations with the knowledge and skills to understand their rights, protect their health, and live confidently. 

The need for comprehensive sexuality education

Klaudia and Melani point out that CSE is especially important in Croatia, where it remains almost non-existent in school curricula. In the few cases where CSE is offered, it mostly focuses on risks, diseases, and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) – failing to equip young people with the tools to understand their own bodies, and rights. They also noticed how the internet has transformed the way young people access information. With so much content available online, it has become harder for youths to differentiate between reliable and misleading sources.

In response, they set out to create a safe space to learn about CSE, built on empathy, trust, and understanding. Together with three other midwifery students and two pedagogy students, Melani and Klaudia have developed evidence-based, interactive, and age-appropriate workshops that use role-playing and open discussions to ensure a friendly and inclusive environment.

“The key is openness and a non-judgmental approach, so students feel safe to ask questions and learn without shame.” – Klaudia

A powerful collaboration 

An important aspect of this project is the collaboration between midwives and pedagogues. For Melani and Klaudia, one of the biggest initial challenges was figuring out how to approach complex and sensitive topics with children and younger audiences. They admitted feeling uncertain about how best to teach teenagers about sexuality and reproductive health. That is why joining forces with pedagogy students made such a big difference; together they could design strategies to overcome the typical classroom stigma, as well as adapt vocabulary for different age groups, and deliver content in a way that was both engaging and inclusive.   

 

A ripple-effect to the community 

So far, the team has implemented eight workshops across two schools, in both urban and rural areas, and the response has been incredibly positive.

“I remember the first presentation when the students were so excited to be there, rushing to the front row. They were eager to learn, and every time we came back, they were even more excited to see us.” Melani shares. 

The most significant impact for her was to see the young students open up about different topics and how comfortable they felt asking questions. 

In rural Croatia, open dialogue about sex and reproductive health is still rare, but Klaudia saw a shift starting to happen and hopes that this openness will have a ripple effect on their friends and families. She was especially proud of the support the project received, not only in the classrooms, but from the community and teachers as well.

“Imagine that after the sessions the adults even asked us to come back – but to have the workshops just for them!” says Klaudia. 

The importance of youths teaching youths 

Peer-to-peer education has proven to be an effective approach to learning that allows young people to build confidence, promote empathy and encourage critical thinking, all while empowering the next generation.  

Klaudia and Melani experienced this first hand. Because of the small age gap between them and the students, they were able to communicate in a relatable way, using familiar language and creating an open, trusting environment. Students felt more comfortable asking questions, something that might not happen so easily with older, more distant professionals. 

From a teaching perspective, the closeness in age also gave Klaudia and Melani a unique insight into how students think and what language and examples would resonate the most. This helped them tailor their workshops in a way that made information clearer, more accessible, and easier to connect with. 

 

The invaluable role of midwives 

Lastly, we asked Klaudia and Melani what advice they would give to other young or future midwives interested in working with youths and delivering comprehensive sexuality education.  

“The most important thing is to not feel inadequate” says Melani. Student midwives already have such strong knowledge and bring the motivation needed to make a real difference in their communities. Therefore, she encourages others to seek support from mentors within their network and connect with organisations doing similar work to join efforts.  

Klaudia also adds that the best way to learn is by doing, and teaching comprehensive sexuality education to young people is such a rewarding experience that you just need to

“go for it”.  

KP Labs and Simera Sense have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) during the 39th Annual Small Satellite Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah. The agreement formalises a growing collaboration between the two companies, whose complementary technologies, optical payloads and onboard data processing can support upcoming Earth observation and planetary exploration missions.

The MoU aims to establish a foundation for closer collaboration between Simera Sense and KP Labs, based on shared goals and complementary capabilities. Additionally, this alignment opens the door to joint deployments where mission-ready components from both partners can be combined into compact, intelligent payloads with minimal integration overhead. By combining advanced optical sensing with in-orbit AI processing, both companies aim to accelerate the delivery of smarter small satellite missions.

“This agreement marks a natural step in the evolution of our collaboration with Simera Sense,” said Michał Zachara, COO at KP Labs. “By combining proven, flight-ready technologies, we’re offering a shortcut to mission teams who want to deploy optical-AI solutions without building everything from scratch.”

The growing demand for real-time insights from space puts increasing pressure on downlink capacity and mission latency. By processing data directly in orbit, satellite operators can make faster decisions, reduce costs, and send back only the most valuable information. Furthermore, this combined solution is particularly relevant for applications such as environmental monitoring, agriculture, urban analytics, and planetary science: domains where both autonomy and data quality are essential.

First Deployment in Action

A concrete example of this collaboration is the upcoming OPS-SAT VOLT mission led by Craft Prospect in partnership with ESA. For the first time, KP Labs and Simera Sense will fly together as an integrated payload. Simera Sense will deliver the HyperScape100, a high-performance multispectral camera, while KP Labs will provide the Leopard Data Processing Unit (DPU), which will run AI-based algorithms directly onboard. Craft Prospect are the pioneer behind the satellite mission, which will serve as a demonstrator for reconfigurable optical and processing systems on a CubeSat platform. With the mission due for launch in mid-2026, OPS-SAT VOLT represents the first formal instance of the partnership in action, highlighting how both technologies can operate jointly to capture and process data autonomously in orbit.

Speaking about the collaboration, Dr. Hina Khan, Head of Commercial at Craft Prospect said: “Craft Prospect is pleased to see the development of the relationship between KP Labs and Simera Sense through the initial discussions on the OPS-SAT VOLT mission, which will demonstrate both partners capabilities for on board processing and optical observations on a small satellite platform.” About what lies ahead, she added: “The mission launch, planned for mid-2026, will provide valuable flight heritage on the integrated payload and help develop further mission opportunities. We look forward to working with KP Labs and Simera Sense in the future.”

The collaboration also underscores a broader shift in how small satellite missions are being built, favouring modular, interoperable components that can be integrated efficiently without bespoke engineering. KP Labs and Simera Sense are already collaborating on future mission concepts and are in discussions with partners seeking to deploy intelligent optical payloads across various orbital platforms.

“Simera Sense sees this collaboration with KP Labs as an essential step in enabling responsive EO missions with smaller satellites in the European landscape,” said Thys Cronje, CCO of Simera Sense. “For Simera Sense, providing our customers with a strategic advantage with near-real-time space-based intelligence is crucial.”

The integrated payload will be demonstrated at selected events in late 2025, highlighting how mission-ready sensors and onboard computing units can deliver meaningful results without ground intervention. This partnership is expected to serve as a foundation for future collaborations across both institutional and commercial missions.

About KP Labs

KP Labs accelerates space exploration through autonomous missions and robotics. The company develops integrated solutions combining hardware, software, and data processing algorithms. KP Labs is currently participating in nine space missions and has completed over 35 R&D projects for the European Space Agency, NASA, and private sector clients. The company employs approximately 85 specialists and holds the status of a Research and Development Centre, as granted by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. In November 2024, KP Labs was awarded the President of the Republic of Poland Prize in the ‘SME Leader’ category.

About Simera Sense

Simera Sense is a leading provider of optical payloads and data analytics solutions for satellite Earth observation. Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Leuven, Belgium, the company serves the medium- to high-resolution optical needs of more than 50 clients worldwide. Our ability to design and produce standardised optical payloads is revolutionising Earth observation with smaller satellites.