Will Marshall and Robbie Schingler co-founded Planet Labs PBC in 2010 with the vision of imaging the entire earth every day to make global change visible, accessible, and actionable. These former NASA scientists-turned-entrepreneurs built and have grown Planet from a small team in a San Francisco garage to a public company of over 1,100 people across the globe, serving more than 1,000 customers. Will serves as CEO and Robbie serves as Chief Strategy Officer.
Today, Planet Labs designs, builds, and operates the largest Earth observation fleet of imaging satellites, with about 200 medium-resolution and high-resolution imaging satellites in orbit. Planet’s robust imagery archive and near-daily imaging capabilities have shed light on some of the most impactful global events of the past fourteen years. Planet’s data is used by researchers and universities to track the effects of climate change, emergency workers to respond to natural and human-made disasters, law enforcement officials to monitor and prevent illegal deforestation, journalists to investigate the environmental impact in areas of conflict, and more. In August 2024, Planet launched its first hyperspectral satellite, Tanager-1, which tracks environmentally harmful methane emissions from space.
Will, Robbie and Planet’s founding story were featured in a 2023 novel When The Heavens Went On Sale and a 2024 documentary Wild Wild Space, streaming on Sky.
