To help bridge the digital divide and provide emergency communications during disasters, Japanese investment company SoftBank Corp has been actively conducting research and development for its High Altitude Platform Station (HAPS) stratospheric telecommunications business since 2017 as a global pioneer in the field.

In 2026, SoftBank plans to launch pre-commercial HAPS services in Japan in partnership with Sceye, a New Mexico, US-based company that develops lighter-than-air (LTA)-type HAPS vehicles. In addition to making an equity investment in Sceye, SoftBank signed an agreement with the company on June 20th, that gives it exclusive rights to provide HAPS-based services in Japan using Sceye’s platform.

Sceye’s HAPS platform uses the buoyant force of helium, a gas lighter than air, to remain airborne for long durations. With more than 20 test flights completed to date, Sceye has a successful track record of collaborating with US state governments and private enterprises.

Using Sceye’s LTA-type HAPS platform, SoftBank plans to begin providing pre-commercial HAPS services in Japan in 2026. This will support communication recovery during disruptions due to large-scale disasters, such as major earthquakes, and deliver connectivity to mountainous regions, remote islands and other areas that are hard to reach with traditional ground-based, or terrestrial, networks.

HAPS has certain advantages over satellite-based communications, including faster speeds, greater capacity, lower latency, and more flexible deployment. Adding HAPS capabilities will enable SoftBank to strengthen its network resilience and promote universal service nationwide.

In parallel, SoftBank will continue to develop its large-scale heavier-than-air (HTA)-type HAPS platform–which uses fixed-wing aircraft for aerodynamic lift to stay aloft–with the aim of utilising it for commercial services in the future.

At SoftBank’s 39th Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (AGM), President & CEO Junichi Miyakawa commented on this new HAPS milestone, saying: “Originally, commercialisation was targeted for 2029, but thanks to significant progress, we’re now able to begin pre-commercial operations in 2026. We plan to first deploy it as a disaster preparedness measure.”

“Until now, telecommunications have focused on connecting devices like smartphones and cars, and a 2D communication framework has been sufficient. In the future, however, 3D communication will be required to support drones and flying cars. Looking ahead to the 6G era, we believe HAPS will become a core infrastructure, and we’re taking the lead in making this a reality,” he added.

SoftBank is promoting ‘Ubiquitous Transformation (UTX)’, a vision of always-connected communications by integrating non-terrestrial networks (NTN) — including satellites and HAPS — with ground-based mobile networks. This collaboration with Sceye will play a central role in realising this vision.

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Categories: Articles, Broadband, MNO, Mobile, Satellite

Tags: haps, Sceye, SoftBank