As Head of Global Government at Amazon’s Kuiper Government Solutions (KGS), Don Brown is responsible for developing Kuiper’s Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite architectures and products for international government customers. In this role, Don advocates for increased commercial space engagement in government systems. He is the founder of the Hosted Payload Alliance and has participated in numerous policy forums on commercial space.
Prior to KGS, Don held leadership positions at several major space operators, including PanAmSat, Intelsat, and Telesat. Most recently, he served as General Manager and Senior Management Official of Telesat U.S. Services, LLC. He led teams responsible for developing the Telesat “Blackjack/Croupier” satellite for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Cisco “IP Router in Space” (IRIS) payload on Intelsat IS-14, launched in November 2009, and the Australian Defence Force (ADF) UHF payload, launched on Intelsat IS-22 in 2012, among others. The ADF Hosted Payload was recognized by Via Satellite magazine as one of the “30 Events that Shaped the Last 30 Years in Satellite.”
From 2020 to 2022, Don was a member of the Space Enterprise Advisory Group (SpEAG), supporting Space Systems Command (SSC), U.S. Space Force. He has also served on the Satellite Task Force of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee to the President of the United States and was Co-Chair of the Government Services Working Group of the Satellite Industry Association. Don earned his bachelor’s degree from Princeton University and is a frequent speaker on commercial satellite operations and national security.
Speaking
17September
11:30 / 12:20
Les Salons Hoche
Session
The Promise of Next-Generation Satcom Systems for Military Forces
