Tarana Wireless, which develops tech for fixed wireless access, raises $60M from Khosla Ventures and satellite operator EchoStar, bringing total raised to $200M
WASHINGTON — Tarana Wireless, a broadband infrastructure developer that counts OneWeb founder Greg Wyler among its backers …
Context & Ripple Effects
Tarana Wireless' $60M round lands mid-way through a decade of heavy capital chasing the same underserved-broadband customer from different angles: OneWeb's $1.2B raise for mass-produced satellites, Altaeros' tethered-balloon broadband bet, and Astranis' small-satellite play all target connectivity where fiber doesn't reach. Tarana's angle is terrestrial fixed wireless, backed by OneWeb founder Greg Wyler and now by satellite operator EchoStar as a strategic investor.
The bet aged well: three years later Tarana raised another $170M at a $1B-plus valuation with an IPO on the roadmap, per its February 2022 round. EchoStar's position is more complicated — it has since sold AWS-4 and H-block spectrum to SpaceX for roughly $17B, taken a $16.5B impairment, and reportedly weighed Chapter 11 to shield licenses from FCC revocation.
First-order effects
- Tarana gains capital to scale fixed wireless deployments toward the $200M total raised, with EchoStar getting an early strategic seat in terrestrial broadband alongside its satellite business.
- Khosla Ventures doubles down on a portfolio company that counts Greg Wyler among its backers, keeping venture money flowing into non-fiber last-mile infrastructure.
Second-order effects
- Rival approaches for the same rural and underserved markets — Astranis' commercial broadband satellites, Altaeros' balloon-based access — must compete against fixed wireless economics that keep attracting nine-figure rounds.
- EchoStar's dual role as spectrum owner and broadband investor foreshadows its later pivot: monetizing AWS-4 and H-block licenses to SpaceX for ~$17B rather than building out networks itself.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, last-mile broadband consolidates into hybrid architectures mixing terrestrial fixed wireless with satellite capacity — the direction Tarana's own trajectory toward a $1B valuation and planned IPO points.
- Strategic operators like EchoStar increasingly act as capital allocators and asset sellers rather than network builders, reshaping how spectrum and access infrastructure get financed under regulatory pressure.
The trend: Broadband access capital is consolidating around hybrid satellite-and-fixed-wireless platforms, while strategic investors like EchoStar shift from building networks to trading the assets beneath them.