exactEarth Ltd is a Canadian company that specializes in data services that deliver real-time global location-based maritime vessel tracking information utilizing patented satellite AIS detection technology.
exactEarth provides satellite AIS data services to commercial markets as well as government customers in India, Canada, United States, Australia and across Europe.[1][2]
Founded in 2009, exactEarth is based in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada. The company was publicly traded until 2021 when Spire Global acquired the company.
History
In 2005, COM DEV International first recognized that the AIS messages being transmitted by major ships could potentially be received from space. COM DEV validated its AIS detection capability through aircraft trials in 2007 and launched a nanosatellite (EV0) in April 2008.[3]