Investing.com -- Satellogic Inc. (NASDAQ: SATL) is generating strong commercial interest in its upcoming Merlin constellation ahead of a pivotal October launch.

In an exclusive interview with Investing.com, the company’s Chief Financial Officer, Rick Dunn, offered fresh details on the company’s pipeline, noting that early sales efforts are already actively "contributing to our backlog and pipeline" beyond the company’s initial anchor customer.

The first Merlin satellite is scheduled to launch in October 2026, with the constellation expected to reach full operational capability in 2027.

Dunn stated that Merlin is expected to represent a fundamental shift in the industry, moving customers from task-based imagery toward what he called "continuous, daily global awareness at one-meter resolution."

"We expect this to accelerate use-cases and adoption among defense and civil government customers," he said, adding that the company expects Merlin to contribute to bookings ahead of launch and to revenue as the constellation enters service.

He also highlighted that the full constellation is not required to begin delivering value, with each incremental satellite adding to an existing fleet of high-resolution assets.

With the October window approaching, the Merlin launch could be seen as an increasingly near-term catalyst, with management confident it will arrive with strong commercial demand.

The comments come on the heels of a solid first quarter in which Satellogic reported 80% year-over-year revenue growth to $6.1 million and generated positive operating cash flow for the first time in its public history. The company ended Q1 with $121.9 million in cash.

“While we do not issue financial guidance, we were Adj. EBITDA negative for Q1 and it was primarily working capital that drove our positive operating cash flow,” Dunn explained. “The operating leverage of our vertically integrated model means that as revenues scale, we can better manage our core expenses, putting us on a very solid financial footing for the rest of the year."

Furthermore, Dunn told Investing.com that the recent $12 million sale of a satellite already in orbit is a “strong validation” of the company’s “rapid, flexible, vertically integrated model,” and they see in-orbit, asset-transfer deals like this “as a highly lucrative, repeatable part of our Space Systems business line and a complement to our Data and Analytics line of business.”

When it comes to business with the U.S. government, the company sees momentum accelerating significantly, with Dunn pointing to recent awards under programs such as the U.S. Office of Naval Research’s Slingshot, NGA Luno, and NASA Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition.

To help navigate this growth, the company recently onboarded Vice Admiral Frank D. Whitworth III as a strategic advisor to guide the integration of high-frequency satellite data into global intelligence architectures.

“While we don’t break out growth percentages by specific sovereign entities, the U.S. remains a primary growth vector for us, though our plan does not require the USG as an anchor customer,” Dunn mentioned.

“We have a diverse international customer base and are not reliant solely on the U.S. Government to grow our business. Our ability to deliver secure, onboard AI processing and real-time intelligence alerts puts us in a highly competitive position to capture a larger share of major defense and intelligence programs across allied nations,” he added.

Satellogic disclaimer: Some responses in this Q&A include forward‑looking statements regarding Satellogic’s expectations, plans, and projections. These statements involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially. Please see Satellogic’s most recent SEC filings, including the “Risk Factors” and “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward‑Looking Statements” sections, available via the Investor Relations page at Satellogic, for important information.