Elon Musk's Starlink Secures $119 Million Montana Funding, Beating Amazon's Project Kuiper In Satellite Internet Push

Elon Musk's satellite internet service provider, Starlink, received $119 million in funding from Montana to bring better connectivity to over 20,000 locations in the state.Satellite Internet Over Fiber InstallationsThe funding, part of the U.S. Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, grants Starlink access to 28% of the 70,000 locations within the state, PCMag reported on Thursday.Starlink's rival, Amazon.com Inc.'s AMZN Project Kuiper, was granted access to 37% of the locations, but received $26 million in federal funding, the report suggests.Montana's BEAD Program selected 65% locations to be served with satellite internet rather than fiber optic cables, joining Colorado, where 50% of locations would have access to satellite internet under the program.The report suggests that BEAD, revised under the Trump administration, has been criticized by experts for removing the government's ability to set the prices for plans intended for low-income households.Starlink's Deals In The Middle East, New Laser TechThe news comes as SpaceX is reportedly in negotiations with major Middle Eastern flight carriers like Emirates and Saudia to provide its satellite internet services on board the flights.SpaceX also unveiled new laser tracking technology that will help Starlink offer data transmission speeds of up to 25 gigabytes per second from a distance of over 2,500 miles.The technology could also be crucial to boosting SpaceX's credentials for President Donald Trump's Golden Dome missile defense system, which SpaceX was curiously left out of in a recent Pentagon briefing.Musk also recently shared updates about the company's flagship rocket, dubbed Starship, after the tenth launch test. Starship is the largest and most powerful rocket ever built.AST Spacemobile Satellites, Government ContractsStarlink's rival AST Spacemobile Inc. ASTS also announced it aims to deploy over 60 satellites in space by next year, targeting 1-2 orbital launches every month to "support continuous service in the US, Europe, Japan, and other strategic markets."The company also secured over 8 government contracts, CEO Abel Avellan shared during the second-quarter earnings call with investors recently, as the company said it was "bullish" on government projects.Check out more of Benzinga's Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link. Trump Eases Space Regulations In Boost For Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin And More Image via Shutterstock