Jane Edwards 
- SDA’s Plaser study with SpaceX will run through October 2027
- Options could lift the contract’s value to $12.7 million
- The 2027 Defense R&D Summit will explore space technologies, directed energy and more
SpaceX has received a broad agency announcement contract from the Space Development Agency to conduct a risk reduction study on its Plug and Play Laser, or Plaser.
Missile warning and tracking integration is among the focus areas of the Plaser study. Government and industry leaders will convene at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2027 Defense R&D Summit on Feb. 4 to discuss advanced space technologies, directed energy, assured connectivity in contested environments, multisensor intelligence, trusted AI and more. Save your seat now to hear from the officials shaping the future of warfare.
The Department of War said Tuesday the contract has an initial value of approximately $9.9 million, with options that could bring the potential value to $12.7 million if exercised.
What Is the Scope of Work Under the SDA Contract?
Under the contract, SpaceX will study ways to reduce technical risk in Plaser, deliver representative hardware and support efforts to integrate the laser technology with missile warning and tracking systems.
The company will carry out contract work in Hawthorne, California, and Redmond, Washington, through Oct. 7, 2027.
What Are the Details of the Plaser Contract?
SDA awarded the contract through a competitive acquisition under its Systems, Technologies, and Emerging Capabilities broad agency announcement. DOW said the number of offers SDA received is unknown.
SDA obligated approximately $9.9 million in fiscal 2026 research, development, test and evaluation funds at the time of the award, which it made on Monday, Nov. 9.
What Other Space Force Contracts Has SpaceX Secured?
The Plaser study adds to SpaceX’s growing work on space-based communications and missile-tracking programs for the Space Force. In April, Space Systems Command awarded the company a $57 million contract to develop and demonstrate the Link-182 space-to-space communications system. SpaceX later secured a $2.29 billion other transaction authority agreement to accelerate the Space Data Network Backbone, an optically interconnected satellite constellation. Days later, it received a $4.16 billion OTA for the Space-Based Airborne Moving Target Indicator program.
The company also continues to win launch work under the National Security Space Launch Phase 3 Lane 1 program. Its awards include nine task orders worth $739 million, a $178.5 million task order for SDA-4 launches and two task orders totaling $1.6 billion for 18 Falcon 9 launches supporting the Space Based Sensing and Targeting portfolio.
How Has SpaceX Expanded Its Government & Commercial Footprint?
Beyond defense contracts, SpaceX has extended its laser communications technology to civil space missions. NASA selected the company to mount two Starlink mini laser terminals on Orion to stream 4K video during Artemis III.
The Space Force has also relied on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 for GPS missions. The rocket launched the GPS III-9 satellite and later delivered the final GPS III satellite to orbit after the service reassigned the mission from ULA’s Vulcan.
On the corporate side, SpaceX acquired xAI to advance space-based artificial intelligence and raised $75 billion in its initial public offering. The Federal Communications Commission also authorized SpaceX to deploy an additional 7,500 second-generation Starlink satellites.
