Patricia Cooper is a leading expert on satellite communications, regulation and space policy, and is the founder of the space consultancy, Constellation Advisory, LLC.

For six years, Cooper led Government Affairs for the Starlink satellite broadband constellation project at Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX). As Vice President, Patricia secured Federal Communications Commission authorization for a record 12,000 satellites, and market access to offer high-speed broadband services in more than 20 countries. She also advocated for sensible updates to spectrum, telecom competition and space safety regulations in the US and internationally, in order to support the new generation of satellite networks. Today, Starlink serves over a million users worldwide with a constellation of over 4,000 satellites.

Prior to SpaceX, Patricia was Intelsat’s Vice President of Government Affairs & Policy, heading up U.S. and international policy and \ and U.S. Congressional lobbying activities for the world’s second largest geostationary satellite fleet. Before that, Patricia led the Satellite Industry Association (SIA), the leading trade organization for satellite operators, manufacturers and service providers. As SIA President, Patricia advocated for the industry in regulatory and national security arenas, and spearheaded a successful bipartisan, bi-cameral legislative initiative to reform export controls for satellites.

Patricia previously served at the U.S. Federal Communications Commission’s International Bureau, and directed international market access for two start-ups – CoreExpress, an Internet fiber infrastructure company, and PanAmSat Corporation, a disruptor in the early geostationary satellite services market that gained global prominence and eventually merged with Intelsat.

Patricia holds a Master’s Degree with Distinction in International Economics from the John Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and Bachelor’s Degrees in Political Science and German from Kansas State University (summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa).