Declan Ganley, an Irish telecommunications entrepreneur and CEO of Rivada Networks, is trying to build something that could change the future of global communications. His plan is called the Outernet, a space based alternative to the current internet that routes all essential data through satellites in low Earth orbit instead of through vulnerable undersea cables. Ganley calls it a self contained data ark in space, one designed to survive even a global blackout.
The stakes are enormous, which is why Beijing is working so aggressively to stop it. The fight now spans satellite spectrum rights, lawsuits, personal pressure, and the larger geopolitical race for control of digital infrastructure.
Ganley envisions hundreds of satellites circling about 600 miles above Earth, linked together by lasers that pass data through space at light speed. The system would not rely on traditional ground infrastructure or the public internet. Instead, every signal would stay in space until it reaches the user. Ganley argues this makes the Outernet the fastest and most secure network ever conceived, and he says it would protect data sovereignty while reducing dependence on undersea cables that can be damaged or cut.
Rivada’s design uses dynamic data routing in orbit. This allows information to jump between satellites instead of passing through vulnerable points on Earth, and Rivada claims it offers enterprise grade security and reliability for governments, militaries, and companies. Ganley cites a pipeline of nearly fifteen billion dollars in signed memorandums of understanding, and he expects demand for orbital networking capacity to explode.
The plan is to deploy six hundred satellites beginning in early 2026. Rivada already has a contract to support the U.S. Navy and is racing to meet international regulatory deadlines.
Why Beijing Wants to Steal or Stop the Outernet
Ganley says the Chinese Communist Party sees outer space as the next frontier for global dominance. China has already built its own satellite megaconstellations such as Guowang and Qianfan, both designed for global internet access, surveillance, and military integration. These networks are expanding at an extraordinary pace. China has launched more than one hundred satellites for its SpaceSail or Qianfan project and has plans for thousands more. They are developing satellites capable of tracking vehicles, scanning cities, and even detecting facial expressions from orbit.
Beijing wants to ensure it controls the infrastructure of global communications. Ganley’s Outernet would break that control. He says that if Chinese authorities cannot own a network, they want to make sure no one else has it. He believes their best strategy is to kill it before it launches. One Chinese business representative even offered him seven and a half billion dollars to partner with China and build the network from Chinese soil. The offer came with an implied threat. Accept the partnership or face endless legal and personal pressure. Ganley refused.
The struggle began with rights to a valuable slice of Ka band satellite spectrum controlled out of Liechtenstein. A German startup called Kleo Connect brought in China’s state owned Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology to fund its own constellation. The Chinese partners soon increased their ownership to a majority stake and launched test satellites from China without consulting their German colleagues. This created suspicion that China aimed to use the Liechtenstein licenses for its own projects.
Ganley moved in by purchasing the Liechtenstein company that held the spectrum rights, aligning with the German founders and taking the permits out of Chinese reach. China responded with what Ganley calls a nuclear level legal assault. He describes a flood of baseless lawsuits, appeals, and personal harassment. Rivada has spent thirty six million dollars fighting them, and the pressure has not stopped. Ganley believes these tactics come from the highest levels of the Chinese system.
How China Could Steal, Copy, or Block the Outernet
Ganley argues that China’s strategy has two paths: steal the technology or prevent rivals from deploying it. They could acquire technical details through legal attacks, partner demands, espionage, or forced joint ventures. They could also overwhelm the spectrum environment by launching thousands of their own satellites, creating congestion that blocks rivals.
China has already built satellite systems that shadow American spacecraft, practice dogfighting in orbit, and use grappling arms. Their kill mesh approach links satellites with ground based targeting. Ganley warns that if China gained control over the Outernet or anything like it, global communications could be subjected to monitoring, censorship, or military pressure.
The Danger if Beijing Succeeds
The Outernet is designed to protect the world from a catastrophic shutdown of undersea cables. More than ninety five percent of international data passes through about five hundred cables on the ocean floor. These lines can be damaged by anchors, storms, fishing gear, or sabotage. Ganley says China has been perfecting cheap and precise ways to find and cut these cables and has already been linked to incidents affecting Taiwan, the Baltic Sea, Finland, and Estonia.
If a hostile power intentionally severed key cables, the world’s phones, banking, flights, and food chains could be disrupted. Ganley argues that the Chinese government is preparing to survive such a scenario by stockpiling supplies and relying on its terrestrial networks. In such an emergency, a functioning space based backup like the Outernet would be priceless. If Beijing cannot control it, they have a strong incentive to prevent it from ever going live.
Rivada has faced obstacles for years. The company has battled regulatory hurdles, corporate disputes, and a checkered business past. Critics point out that Rivada has never operated a commercial wireless network. But Ganley insists his team has the experience to execute. He also says his moral and personal experience in the former Soviet Union taught him not to compromise with communism. He claims he would rather destroy the project than hand it to Beijing.
He remains defiant as lawsuits continue and unidentified individuals follow him at conferences. He says he knows the risk, but believes that courage is more valuable in the long term. To him, the Outernet is not just another telecom venture. It is a shield against global vulnerability and a challenge to authoritarian control of space.
Declan Ganley’s Outernet is more than a technical system. It represents a strategic battle over who will control the next generation of digital infrastructure. For China, space based networks are a tool for surveillance, censorship, and military advantage. For Ganley and his supporters, the Outernet is a way to ensure an open and resilient communication system that survives any crisis.
The world now watches a race between a private satellite network backed by Western investors and a massive state driven effort by Beijing. Many analysts warn that the outcome will influence global security, freedom of information, and the safety of modern civilization for decades to come.
If Ganley is right, the first to dominate orbital communications will hold one of the most powerful positions in the twenty first century. And China knows it.
ACZ Editor: China’s network would be used for Chinese purposes, just like its internal internet, it would be censored, spied upon and blocked whenever it suits China. Cross your fingers for Ganley.