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Earth at dusk over North America on the right, ringed by thousands of small satellite points; empty dark warm space on the left.

The new network

What is Amazon Leo?

Formerly Project Kuiper. Who runs it, how many satellites are up, which antennas Amazon has shown, and what it is not.

By Starlink vs LeoFacts checked How we checked

Computed positions of 11,112 Starlink and 391 Amazon Leo satellites at 23:30 UTC on October 25, 2026, from CelesTrak orbital elements. Earth imagery: NASA Blue Marble and Black Marble (public domain). Render: Starlink vs Leo from CelesTrak data; Earth imagery NASA (public domain)

Where it stands · as of

As of Nov 3, 2026, Amazon Leo, called Project Kuiper until Amazon renamed it on Nov 13, 2025, is Amazon’s own low-Earth-orbit satellite internet network. It is still testing in a private preview Confirmed with select businesses, and US households can’t order it: Not available to order for homes (no consumer sales) Confirmed.

From Project Kuiper to Amazon Leo

Amazon worked on the network for years under the code name Project Kuiper. On Nov 13, 2025 it announced the name it keeps for good:

“Now, we’re ready to share our permanent brand for the program: Amazon Leo, a simple nod to the low Earth orbit satellite constellation that powers our network.”

Amazonaboutamazon.comConfirmedchecked

Its FAQ puts the change in one line:

“We started work under the code name ‘Project Kuiper,’ but retired that name on November 13, 2025, and adopted Amazon Leo as our permanent identity.”

Amazon FAQaboutamazon.comConfirmedchecked

Older news and filings use 'Kuiper'; the FCC license holder is still Kuiper Systems LLC. So searches for “Amazon Kuiper” or “Project Kuiper” lead to the same network, and this site files them under Amazon Leo.

Who runs Amazon Leo?

Amazon itself. Its FAQ places Amazon Leo inside the company’s consumer-devices business, not in a separate company:

“No. Amazon Leo is an Amazon business, part of the same Devices and Services division responsible for Kindle, Echo, Fire TV, eero, Ring, and other tech devices.”

Amazon FAQaboutamazon.comConfirmedchecked

Press reports describe Rajeev Badyal as the head of Amazon Leo:

“Rajeev Badyal, head of Amazon Leo, told Ars that the existing constellation had enough capacity to do that, and the company was trying to add resiliency before offering service.”

Broadband Breakfast, reporting an Ars Technica interviewbroadbandbreakfast.comReportedchecked

Amazon builds the satellites itself: more than 1,000 built Confirmed checked by its own count on Oct 8, 2026, far more than are in orbit, because rockets, not factories, set the pace (see the launch pause).

Where does Amazon Leo stand for US homes?

Amazon describes the service as still in testing:

“…is currently testing the service with employees and with select enterprise customers as part of a private preview.”

Amazonaboutamazon.comConfirmedchecked

Its newest timing, in its results of Oct 29, 2026, is Initial service later in 2026 Announced checked , with no date, no locations and nothing yet for US homes.

The FCC put it plainly when it ruled on Amazon’s deployment deadline on Jun 5, 2026:

“At this time, only one operator, SpaceX, is providing broadband to American consumers from low-Earth orbit.”

FCC, order DA 26-553FCC document DA-26-553A1Confirmedchecked

For Amazon’s exact wording on the US site, the countries where deals are signed and what the sign-up form does, read Is Amazon Leo available in the US yet? For dates, read the launch-date page.

Satellites, in brief

Amazon gives a round number rather than a live count:

“Amazon Leo has launched nearly 400 satellites to date across 14 missions since that initial launch…”

Amazon mission pageaboutamazon.comchecked

Satellites, as of Nov 2, 2026

In orbit, by two trackers’ counts (launched minus reentered)
392 Our calculation checked
Our calculation, not an Amazon figure
Needed in orbit by the FCC’s Jul 30, 2026 halfway mark, which passed
1,616 Confirmed checked
First-generation satellites the FCC requires by Jul 30, 2029
3,232 Confirmed checked
Last Amazon Leo launch (LA-08, the final Atlas V)
Jul 2, 2026 Confirmed checked

The next launch with an announced date is LV-01, Amazon’s first on United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket, with 40 satellites Planned, targeted for Nov 13, 2026 Planned checked , pending range approval. LE-04 on an Ariane 6 follows, no earlier than Nov 23, 2026 Planned checked . Neither has flown, and launch dates can slip. Amazon set the Vulcan date on Oct 28, 2026:

“…with liftoff targeted for Friday, November 13, 2026, pending range approval…”

Amazon mission pageaboutamazon.comPlannedchecked

Every launch, count and FCC milestone is in the tracker.

Antennas, in brief

Amazon calls its dishes terminals and has shown three. None has a price, and the speeds are Amazon’s own ratings, not measurements. The full specs are on the terminals page; prices, when Amazon sets them, will be on the price page.

  • Amazon Leo Nano

    Size
    7 x 7 in checked
    Weight
    2.2 lb checked
    Max download
    100 Mbps Announced checked
    Max upload
    Not announced checked
    Pitched for
    consumer, mobility
    Price
    Not announced checked

  • Amazon Leo Pro

    Size
    11 x 11 in checked
    Weight
    5.3 lb checked
    Max download
    400 Mbps Announced checked
    Max upload
    Not announced checked
    Pitched for
    consumer, business, enterprise, maritime
    Price
    Not announced checked

  • Amazon Leo Ultra

    Size
    20 x 30 x 1.9 in checked
    Weight
    43 lb checked
    Max download
    1,000 Mbps Announced checked
    Max upload
    400 Mbps Announced checked
    Pitched for
    enterprise, government
    Price
    Not announced checked

Amazon's own footnote on every speed: “Speed metrics are based on limited preliminary testing and are not guaranteed.” leo.amazon.com, checked .

What is Amazon Leo often mistaken for?

Three mix-ups come up again and again. Each is settled by Amazon’s or the FCC’s own words.

Amazon Leo is

  • Amazon’s own network, run inside Amazon’s devices business (Amazon FAQ, quoted above).
  • Its own satellites, built by Amazon: more than 1,000 built Confirmed.
  • Still in testing, with Amazon employees and select businesses, in a private preview that began in Nov 2025 Confirmed.

Amazon Leo isn’t

  • Not Blue Origin. Amazon’s FAQ places Leo inside Amazon itself (quoted above). Blue Origin builds the New Glenn rocket, which Amazon has booked (24 firm launches Confirmed); none had flown an Amazon Leo mission by Nov 3, 2026.
  • Not Starlink. Starlink is SpaceX’s network. SpaceX has sold Amazon rocket launches (3 Falcon 9 launches Confirmed, all flown), but the satellites on them were Amazon’s.
  • Not on sale to US homes. No plan, price or order page yet: Not available to order for homes (no consumer sales) Confirmed.

Amazon Leo basics: what readers ask

Is Amazon Leo the same as Project Kuiper?

Yes. Project Kuiper was the code name; Amazon renamed the network Amazon Leo on Nov 13, 2025 Confirmed checked . FCC licenses still use the company name Kuiper Systems LLC.

Why did Project Kuiper become Amazon Leo?

Project Kuiper was only ever a working name. Amazon’s FAQ: “We started work under the code name ‘Project Kuiper,’ but retired that name on November 13, 2025, and adopted Amazon Leo as our permanent identity.”

What does Leo mean in Amazon Leo?

Low Earth orbit (LEO), where the satellites fly. From Amazon’s rename announcement of Nov 13, 2025: “Now, we’re ready to share our permanent brand for the program: Amazon Leo, a simple nod to the low Earth orbit satellite constellation that powers our network.”

Is Amazon Leo part of Blue Origin?

Amazon’s FAQ answers: “No. Amazon Leo is an Amazon business, part of the same Devices and Services division responsible for Kindle, Echo, Fire TV, eero, Ring, and other tech devices.” Blue Origin builds the New Glenn rocket, on which Amazon has booked launches.

Is Amazon Leo the same as Starlink?

No. They are rival low-orbit networks run by different companies: Amazon Leo by Amazon, Starlink by SpaceX. On Jun 5, 2026 the FCC wrote that only SpaceX was serving American consumers from low orbit. To compare the two, see Amazon Leo vs Starlink.

Does Amazon Leo use Starlink satellites?

No. Amazon builds its own satellites. SpaceX has launched some of them on Falcon 9 rockets Amazon paid for (3 launches Confirmed); launching a satellite doesn’t make it part of Starlink.

Read next

How these facts were checked

We read Amazon’s own Amazon Leo pages (leo.amazon.com and aboutamazon.com), its FAQ, mission page and quarterly results, and the FCC orders that license the network. Every quote shows the day we last checked it against its source: Amazon’s pages on Nov 3, 2026 (the LV-01 launch date on Nov 3, 2026), the FCC orders on Oct 25, 2026. Satellite counts in orbit come from Jonathan McDowell's tracker and are labeled as our calculation, because Amazon publishes no exact live count. Each value shows its status and the date we checked it. Read the editorial policy.

FCC orders and Census data files are fixed public records whose text can't change, so the "Facts checked" date leaves them out. We read them on Oct 25, 2026; each one is listed at the foot of the page.

Where each fact comes from

  1. aboutamazon.com/news/amazon-leo/amazon-leo-satellite-internet-u… (primary source) · checked
  2. leo.amazon.com/technology (primary source) · checked
  3. aboutamazon.com/news/amazon-leo/project-kuiper-becomes-amazon-l… (primary source) · checked
  4. aboutamazon.com/news/innovation-at-amazon/what-is-amazon-projec… (primary source) · checked
  5. broadbandbreakfast.com/amazon-leo-aiming-to-sway-consumers-from… (secondary report) · checked
  6. aboutamazon.com/stories/how-amazon-leo-builds-satellites (primary source) · checked
  7. leo.amazon.com (primary source) · checked
  8. s2.q4cdn.com/299287126/files/doc_earnings/2026/q3/earnings-resu… (primary source) · checked
  9. docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-26-553A1.pdf (primary source) · checked
  10. aboutamazon.com/news/innovation-at-amazon/project-kuiper-satell… (primary source) · checked
  11. planet4589.org/space/con/kp/stats.html (secondary report) · checked
  12. newsroom.arianespace.com/arianespace-to-launch-36-amazon-leo-sa… (primary source) · checked
  13. aboutamazon.com/news/amazon-leo/amazon-leo-plans-double-launch-… (primary source) · checked
  14. aboutamazon.com/news/innovation-at-amazon/amazon-project-kuiper… (primary source) · checked
  15. aboutamazon.com/news/amazon-leo/amazon-leo-uzbekistan, published · checked