Q1 2026 Earnings Call — May 14, 2026
Analyst Mike Crawford (BRIO Securities): Would you mind just summarizing how much 900 megahertz spectrum XNAV currently owns and how this was acquired over time, and then what PMT precision gains would be enabled by a full 10 by 5 5G signal?
Executive: NextNAP currently has the rights to up 4 billion megahertz POP across the 900, the lower 900 megahertz band. Our PNT simulations currently, which will be tested through our field efforts over in Santa Clara show comparable to GPS performance, which is single digit accuracy and timing synchronization to meet critical infrastructure needs.
Thank you. And then my follow up question just relates to how a drone, a physical AI instance would access the PRS reference signal embedded in 5G? Is there any other additional steps that would be required for these systems to access that signal?
Executive: I mean, first of all, let's say we're super excited about this new capability that we're stepping into, which is sensing of drones as it becomes a really important issue for our national security. What we basically are working with is the ability, and what's really nice about it is that it's the PRS signal in a 5G setting not only provides positioning and timing capability, we really don't have to do anything else with that signal to be able to then extract drone detection and sensing, which makes this a very attractive solution. One of the strengths of NextMap is that we provide solutions. And that solution means that we not only are developing the tech, but we also have the spectrum and the licenses to be able to deploy that technology. That's a very powerful statement that working across federal agencies and our national security interests and equities, they find it extremely compelling, and therefore, we're excited to be joining a KUDU and start this journey.
Analyst Tim Horn (Oppenheimer): On the sensing technology, does that tie into the P&T or is that unique to what you guys are doing from a P&T and technology perspective? Does anyone else have that capability?
Executive: So it is the same PRS signal that you extract positioning and timing from that actually gets used to sense drones and objects at a certain elevation, right? So the signal is the same, the underlying 5G is the same, and then what we extract is through a technology that is spearheaded by the Okuru Department of War office that is called ISAC, which is integrated sensing technologies that is also standards-based. So what's the nice thing about having an underlying 5G that evolves to 6G and 7G network is that you use standards-based technologies to not only get positioning and timing, but you're also able to use that same signal within the same radio for being able to sense and detect drones.
And how unique is that capability? Does anyone else have that to your knowledge?
Executive: So there's a lot of companies. One thing about ISAC is it's standards-based, and there's a lot of vendors, and I could read publicly about them, that are developing the ISAC technology, which is 5G-based. But what we provide is not just the tech and the airline network, but we provide the solution because one of the problems is that, you know, you also need the spectrum to be able to deploy all of this on, which is a great, you know, sort of fit for us where we bring the spectrum and the tech to the table.
Analyst: Oh, that's what I meant. I mean, so the spectrum and the PNT, as long as the technology is that, that's fairly unique. Does anyone, I mean, it doesn't sound like anyone else can replicate that type of sensing technology easily. But correct me if I'm wrong.
Executive: Right. Exactly. That's a really good point, right? I mean, Ericsson and among other RAN vendors are developing this technology, but at the end of the day, they need a partner, they need someone to bring the spectrum to the table, and we already have both. And we're working with a wide industry on this. It's a very interesting technology and very interesting development that's happening within the 5G network right now.
Analyst: Are you working with the FAA? They are looking for ways to incorporate drones and other things. Are you working with that process at all?
Executive: So what we started out is filing in the drone dominance proceeding with the FCC, which we're super excited about. And what we've announced publicly is also separate than that, our CUDU membership. That is what we've stated publicly. But of course, we're talking to all the stakeholders on the vendor and also agency space about this.
Executive Maryam Saran (CEO): In closing, we continue to engage constructively with key stakeholders as anticipated. Interagency review and FCC processes continue as it has in matters more complex than ours. At the same time, we're building momentum towards commercialization and seeing expanding interest across the broader ecosystem. We continue to focus on our strategy and execution to achieve our goals. We are very proud of the progress we are making to deliver a resilient, future-proof terrestrial complement and backup to GPS, strengthening U.S. economic and national security at a critical moment in time. Thank you, everyone.
Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's call. We thank you for participating. You may now disconnect your lines.