# Kook's Weekly - Is SpaceX Bluffing About Its T-Mobile Phone War?

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/ast-spacemobile-podcast-7446851/kook-s-weekly-is-spacex-bluffing-about-its-t-mobile-phone-war
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/ast-spacemobile-podcast-7446851/kook-s-weekly-is-spacex-bluffing-about-its-t-mobile-phone-war.md
Podcast: [AST SpaceMobile Podcast](https://stenobird.com/podcast/ast-spacemobile-podcast-7446851)
Published: 2026-08-08T23:13:27+00:00
Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/spacemob/episodes/Kooks-Weekly---Is-SpaceX-Bluffing-About-Its-T-Mobile-Phone-War-e3n5e77
Audio file: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/APO5847079359.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/ast-spacemobile-podcast-7446851/episodes/kook-s-weekly-is-spacex-bluffing-about-its-t-mobile-phone-war
Duration seconds: 1867

## Resource

Three more Blue Bird satellites just reached orbit, and $ASTS now covers 80% of Europe's mobile subscribers. Kook breaks down last week's successful launch and the growing confidence that AST SpaceMobile's launch cadence, not satellite production, is now the real story. He digs into a Meta working session hint, the near-final J-LEO deal with Rakuten in Japan, a fresh spectrum license, and a buried press release revealing integration testing with Deutsche Telekom, the 51% owner of T-Mobile. Kook also covers the FCC's push to clear the path for direct-to-cell, SpaceX's shaky terrestrial phone ambitions after its first earnings call, and Viasat's dumpster-fire quarter that shows just how fast satellite direct-to-cell is eating legacy revenue. All eyes now turn to AST SpaceMobile's earnings call this Monday for more on financials and launch visibility. 00:00 Introduction and crazy travel schedule 01:05 Recap of last week's successful 3-satellite launch 02:32 Launch cadence and timing for the next launch 03:46 Abel's comments on the platform's growing capabilities 05:38 Brendan Carr and the FCC clearing the path for DTC 06:24 Jennifer Manner joins the FCC's Technological Advisory Council 07:35 SpaceX's tweet and Gary Tan's reaction 09:21 Vinod S teases Meta working session with $ASTS 11:11 J-LEO update and Japan spectrum license 12:53 Cat's Y spectrum thread 13:19 Blue Origin's valve failure and retrofit update 15:12 SpaceX share unlock shakes out shorts 16:05 SpaceX's first earnings call and omni-connectivity 17:42 Debating SpaceX's terrestrial MNO ambitions 19:59 Tim Farrar's posturing theory on SpaceX vs T-Mobile 21:24 Piper Sandler turns incrementally bullish on $ASTS 22:02 Deutsche Telekom integration testing revealed 24:05 Battery Commodity: 80% of Europe's subscriber…

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## Transcript

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