Maxar Recognized as a ` 2025 Best Workplace for Innovators’ by Fa...

At Maxar Intelligence, innovation is in our DNA. We founded the commercial Earth observation industry in the 1990s, receiving the first license and launching the first commercial satellite into orbit. Ever since then, we've continued to push the boundaries of what's possible in geospatial intelligence.

Whether it's launching software-enabled products like Raptor and Sentry -for GPS-denied drone operations and global-scale site monitoring, respectively-or expanding our on-orbit capabilities with next-generation imaging satellites, we're continuing to transform how geospatial intelligence shapes our world.

Today, our culture of innovation was recognized by Fast Company in its Best Workplaces for Innovators awards for 2025. Maxar earned the number 34 spot on the annual award that recognizes the 100 companies that foster a culture of innovation and empower employees to drive creativity and new ideas. It also earned a spot on the Best Workplaces for Innovators North America list.

This recognition was based on Maxar's deep culture of innovation, as exemplified by some of our recent product launches-most notably, Raptor.

Innovating at the speed of mission

Raptor, a suite of vision-based software products solves a major challenge to autonomous drone operations-GPS jamming. Raptor uses only a drone's native camera and our 90 million-plus sq km of global 3D terrain data to help the platform navigate with extreme precision and extract accurate ground coordinates in real-time without GPS.

The Raptor project went from a business case to a successful flight test in less than six months, and the best part is how this innovation came to be. It wasn't linear, and it wasn't an idea that sprung from an R&D lab. Sales teams in the U.S. and Sweden were hearing the chatter at trade shows and in customer meetings about concerns with the increasing challenges of GPS jamming, which was impacting drone performance, especially in defense applications. Our technology and product teams thought that maybe we could give drones another point of reference.

"We thought there might be a way to use Maxar's unique 3D terrain data to give drones a GPS-resilient 'map' for accurate navigation," said Curtis Anderson, senior account manager, Maxar. "We were confident it would work, but at the time, we only had a hypothesis and a business plan. We presented it to the leadership team and they greenlit a pilot program. Within a month, we found an equipment manufacturer to serve as a pilot partner and we were off to the races."

This solution didn't require a years-long innovation cycle. It was developed through a fast, collaborative approach that brought together sales, engineering, product, and other functions to innovate via a skunkworks approach. Rapid innovation at its finest.

Collaboration Breeds Innovation at Maxar

Raptor is just one example of Maxar's commitment to innovation. Our multi-disciplinary team strives each day to find solutions to our customers' biggest challenges.

To lay the groundwork for deeper innovation through collaboration, we take a "pod" approach to product ideation across all product lines. We bring together sales, product, engineering, finance, and even legal team members to realize first-of-a-kind products that we believe can accelerate our growth trajectory. Examples include using satellite data and analytics for global-scale site monitoring, as well as AI-driven mapping (updating the world's best consumer maps daily instead of monthly or quarterly).

We recognize the need to innovate across everything we do-and we want every team member to contribute to that journey. We also have a "Broken Windows" initiative that invites ideas on processes, systems, or tools that we can change or re-engineer to improve efficiency and reduce costs. Any employee can submit an idea, and a cross-functional review team selects the top ideas to execute on. Within the first few weeks of launching this program earlier this year, we had received dozens of submissions from team members across all levels of the organization.

And there's more. Each quarter, we recognize and celebrate the individuals and teams who embody the Maxar spirit of innovation and the relentless pursuit to solve customers' problems. Our Values Champions award recognizes individuals and teams for their commitment to Maxar's ideals, including a cash bonus award.

Click here to see the special issue of Fast Company on its website and see the full list of Best Workplaces for Innovators.

We're always seeking problem solvers, changemakers and go getters to help us build the next big thing. If you're interested in joining the team, check out our job openings here.