NextNav Eyes GPS Backup Network as FCC Review, SpaceX Support Build Momentum

Key Points

• NextNav is developing a terrestrial backup to GPS by combining its positioning, navigation and timing technology with 900 MHz spectrum, including capabilities to identify a user’s elevation or building floor.
• The company said the FCC’s proposed rulemaking is under interagency review, while SpaceX has urged the FCC to advance NextNav’s spectrum repositioning request, potentially supporting terrestrial and space-based deployments.
• Testing has demonstrated positioning accuracy within one meter, and NextNav is pursuing partnerships with companies including Safran and railroads. The company plans to use strategic partners rather than raise capital for a network that could cost more than $10 billion, while reporting about $300 million in liquidity after debt conversion and warrant exercises.

NextNav NASDAQ: NN is pursuing a terrestrial positioning, navigation and timing, or PNT, network designed to complement and provide backup capabilities for GPS in the United States, Chief Financial Officer Tim Gray said during the Lytham Partners Fall 2026 Investor Conference.

Gray said the company sees a security and commercial need for terrestrial GPS alternatives, citing vulnerabilities associated with satellite-based GPS. NextNav’s proposed offering combines its PNT technology with its holdings of 900 MHz spectrum.

“It is a significant security and commercial risk that there is no terrestrial backup,” Gray said. “We are doing that by bringing a combined solution with our unique PNT, or position, navigation, and timing technology, along with our spectrum position at 900 MHz to provide a solution to this problem.”

Spectrum and PNT Technology

NextNav holds 14 MHz of low-band spectrum, which Gray said is valuable because spectrum below 1 GHz has propagation and building-penetration characteristics that support wireless networks. He said the company believes its spectrum position is distinctive because limited low-band spectrum remains available in the U.S.

Gray also highlighted NextNav’s ability to measure vertical location, or the Z-axis. While conventional GPS may identify an outdoor location such as an intersection, he said NextNav’s technology is intended to identify a user’s elevation within a building, such as a specific floor.

The company is seeking an FCC rule change to repurpose its spectrum band for newer technologies. Under the existing framework, NextNav holds 14 MHz of licensed multilateration Location and Monitoring Service spectrum, which Gray characterized as suitable for limited data transmissions rather than advanced wireless uses.

NextNav has proposed an optimized band plan featuring paired 5-by-10 MHz blocks that could support both PNT and 5G operations. Gray said 5G operations would coexist with existing licensed and unlicensed uses across the band.

FCC Process and SpaceX Filing

According to Gray, the FCC’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, or NPRM, has been written and is undergoing an interagency review led by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, an office within the Office of Management and Budget. Federal agencies can review the NPRM and provide feedback to the FCC through that process.

Gray said NextNav has made what it considers significant progress in discussions with OIRA and multiple federal agencies. He said the company is confident an NPRM will be issued, although he did not provide a projected timetable.

SpaceX has also submitted comments to the FCC docket, an action Gray said NextNav views positively. He said SpaceX broadly advocated for rules that would permit either terrestrial or space-based deployment when spectrum bands are repurposed, potentially enabling faster use of spectrum. Gray said SpaceX also specifically urged the FCC to move forward with NextNav’s requested spectrum repositioning.

Testing and Commercial Partnerships

NextNav has conducted testing under FCC short-term authorizations in Northern California and Colorado. In Northern California, the company has tested its 5G PNT technology under rules that Gray said could apply if the FCC grants the company’s petition.

Gray said recent results showed positioning accuracy within one meter. He said the results support the company’s view that its technology could complement GPS and improve location accuracy in indoor and GPS-challenged environments, including potential public-safety applications.

In Colorado, NextNav has tested coexistence with railroads that are licensees in the band. Gray said that work has produced positive results and that the company is advancing to next steps with the railroad participants.

The company has also announced partnerships to test its technology across multiple use cases. Gray pointed to Safran as a notable example, saying the defense and aeronautics company is working to test and develop products incorporating NextNav’s capabilities. He said the partnership could help validate the technology and explore applications where vertical-location information is important.

Balance Sheet Changes and Network Strategy

Gray said NextNav does not intend to raise capital to independently construct a network that could cost more than $10 billion. Instead, the company plans to explore arrangements with strategic partners that could leverage existing or planned terrestrial and space-based infrastructure.

Potential structures could include partnerships, lease agreements or a sale, Gray said, adding that the approach will depend on discussions that progress alongside the regulatory process.

The company also strengthened its balance sheet earlier in the summer, according to Gray. NextNav converted $190 million of debt into equity and exercised public $11.50 SPAC warrants, generating $170 million of liquidity. At the end of the June quarter, Gray said the company had roughly $300 million in liquidity.

Gray said the changes removed the debt burden and provided additional financial runway as NextNav works through regulatory, technical and commercial milestones.

About NextNav (NASDAQ:NN)

NextNav Inc develops positioning, navigation and timing technologies designed to provide accurate location information where traditional GPS may be unavailable, unreliable or insufficient. The company's solutions are intended to support applications that require precise two-dimensional and three-dimensional geolocation, including public safety, wireless communications, mapping, transportation and critical infrastructure.

Its Pinnacle platform provides nationwide vertical-location services, enabling devices and networks to determine elevation or floor level in addition to latitude and longitude.

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