Intuitive Machines Awarded Contract to Build Two IM 300 Platforms

Intuitive Machines (LUNR ), Inc. said on September 1, 2026, that it has been awarded a contract to build two IM 300 series spacecraft platforms for a new customer the company did not identify. The Houston-based space technology, infrastructure, and services company announced the award in a press release, stating that the contract expands the IM 300 customer base and reflects demand for spacecraft platforms that can be configured to a specific mission and delivered on compressed timelines. The company did not disclose the contract value, the delivery schedule, or the customer’s mission for the platforms.

“This contract demonstrates that the IM 300 can serve multiple missions with various customers,” said Chris Johnson, President of Intuitive Machines Space Systems. “The modularity of the IM 300 enabled us to scale its capability to support a heavier, higher-power payload class.”

Platform Design and Production

The IM 300 is the proliferated platform in the company’s satellite product line and is engineered around a modular architecture that allows the same core bus to support substantially different payloads and mission profiles, according to the announcement. The company lists the following platform capabilities:

• Proliferated-architecture readiness. Low unit mass allows multiple spacecraft to be manifested on a single launch, lowering the cost of deploying and replenishing a constellation.
• High power in a lightweight structure. The IM 300 is designed to carry a relatively heavy payload on a low-mass bus, with power capability the company describes as at the top of its class.
• Scalable payload accommodation. Standardized interfaces support commercial, civil, and national security payloads across all mission sets.
• Optical and radio frequency crosslinks. The platform supports both optical and radio frequency inter-satellite links, enabling operation as a networked constellation node rather than a standalone asset.
• Configurable propulsion. Customers can select chemical or electric propulsion depending on orbit, maneuvering requirements, and mission duration.

The IM 300 is produced at the company’s high-volume satellite production facility in Palo Alto, California, which Intuitive Machines describes as purpose-built for serial spacecraft manufacturing rather than one-off builds. The company states that this infrastructure, combined with a qualified supplier base, allows it to accept new orders without disrupting existing customer schedules.

Recent IM 300 Awards

The September 1 order follows two IM 300-related awards the company announced in August 2026. On August 4, 2026, Intuitive Machines announced it was selected by L3Harris Technologies (LHX ) to support the development and production of spacecraft platforms for the Space Development Agency’s Accelerated Missile Defense Tranche 3 mission. Under that award, Intuitive Machines will design, build, and deliver 18 spacecraft platforms to support L3Harris’ missile defense solutions for hypersonic and ballistic missile tracking. According to that announcement, the mission supports the Golden Dome for America’s space-based capabilities and will be built on the IM 300 platform, which the company said is also used for the upcoming Tranche 1, Tranche 2, and Tranche 3 Tracking Layer missions.

On August 18, 2026, the company announced that NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California selected it to provide the spacecraft platform, system-level integration, and mission solutions for EAGLE-VSWIR, an Earth observation mission under NASA’s Earth Science Division. EAGLE-VSWIR will fly on the IM 300 spacecraft bus and is targeted for launch in 2028, equipped with a hyperspectral visible to shortwave infrared instrument designed to perform surface biology and geology observations from Earth orbit. Under that agreement, Intuitive Machines will also manage the mission operations and ground segment scope.

The company stated that the EAGLE-VSWIR award marks the second NASA low Earth orbit science mission it is supporting, following its selection to provide an IM 500 spacecraft bus and system-level integration for NASA’s Earth Dynamics Geodetic Explorer mission, managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and led by Principal Investigator Dr. Helen Amanda Fricker of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego.

“NASA’s science missions are being asked to deliver faster and inside tighter cost caps, and that is exactly the problem our platforms solve,” said Anand Mahendra, Chief Growth Officer of Intuitive Machines, in the August 18 announcement. The company stated in that release that the IM 300 series platform has customers across national security and civil programs.

Corporate Background

Intuitive Machines completed its acquisition of Lanteris Space Systems, formerly Maxar Space Systems, on January 13, 2026. The transaction, first announced on November 4, 2025, was completed for $800 million before closing adjustments, consisting of $450 million in cash and $350 million in Intuitive Machines Class A common stock. According to the completion announcement, Lanteris’ LEO, MEO, and GEO satellites support missile warning and tracking, tactical intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, Earth observation, and space domain awareness.

On February 25, 2026, the company announced a $175 million strategic equity investment led by global institutional investors through the issuance and sale of Class A common stock. Intuitive Machines stated it intended to use the capital to support revenue expansion and investment in communications and data processing technologies, including its Near Space Network Services and the Lanteris 1300 series platform. In that announcement, the company stated it has built over 300 spacecraft, delivered over 260 kilograms of payload to the lunar surface, and provided precision navigation expertise that has guided spacecraft across the solar system.

Intuitive Machines describes itself as a next-generation space infrastructure company delivering integrated capabilities across spacecraft manufacturing, communications, networks, mission operations, and ground infrastructure to build, connect, and operate systems across Earth orbit, cislunar space, and deep space for commercial, civil, and national security customers.

The September 1 announcement included forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, covering expectations regarding satellite build timing, demand for the company’s product portfolio, and revenue from government and commercial contracts. The company directed readers to risk factors in its Annual Report on Form 10-K and its most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.