On Wednesday, September 2, 2026, Hungarian telecommunications and defense conglomerate 4iG Group signed two commercial and national security agreements with SpaceX.
Executed at SpaceX facilities in Texas, the deal establishes Europe’s first partnership to deploy Starlink Mobile direct-to-cell services across Hungary and the Western Balkans while establishing a dedicated Sovereign Solutions framework for encrypted defense communications.
Technical Parameters of Starlink Mobile and Sovereign Networks
The partnership encompasses two satellite communications vectors designed to combine commercial cellular extension with military network sovereignty:
- Commercial Starlink Mobile Integration: 4iG will integrate SpaceX’s satellite-to-mobile technology into its regional terrestrial mobile networks, providing coverage in unserved or remote geographic regions across Hungary and the Western Balkans.
- 5G NTN Roadmap: The initial direct-to-cell rollout will transition to second-generation (V2) Starlink Mobile technology using SpaceX’s global 2 GHz spectrum rights, establishing a 3GPP-compliant 5G Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN).
- Sovereign Solutions Defense Layer: 4iG Space and Defence Technologies (4iG SDT) and SpaceX will co-develop an end-to-end encrypted satellite communications architecture. The system provides hardened data links and redundant command-and-control capacity for national security and civil defense applications during terrestrial network outages.
Corporate Expansion and Regional Defense Heritage
The agreement expands 4iG Group’s space and defense portfolio across Central and Eastern Europe. The firm previously anchored its space division by contracting Northrop Grumman to manufacture HUGEO, Hungary’s first sovereign geostationary satellite under the HUSAT program.
Additionally, 4iG SDT broadened its transatlantic space technology footprint by executing a $100 million strategic equity investment in commercial space station operator Axiom Space.
Executive Leadership Perspective
The agreement was finalized by Gellért Jászai, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of 4iG Group, and Gwynne Shotwell, President and Chief Operating Officer of SpaceX.
“Today’s announcement underscores the importance of making connectivity ubiquitous for everyone,” said Gwynne Shotwell, President and Chief Operating Officer of SpaceX. “4iG Group and SpaceX developed a first-of-its-kind model that represents a commercial service with Starlink’s satellite-to-mobile technology and establishing the first Sovereign Solutions in Europe.”
Service Rollout
4iG Group plans to initiate first-generation Starlink Mobile commercial messaging and voice services across its Central and Eastern European operating territories following regulatory approvals. Subsequent phases will introduce high-bandwidth 5G NTN data capabilities and operationalize the encrypted Sovereign Solutions satellite channels for military and government users across the region.
