Cornell-led space tech startup acquired by Pasteur Labs

FOSAI, an aerospace and defense technology company led by Gregory Falco '10, assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Cornell, has been acquired by Pasteur Labs, a developer of artificial intelligence-driven physics simulation tools which was founded by Alexander Lavin '12.

Falco, who is also a faculty member in Cornell's Systems Engineering program, is CEO of FOSAI, which has worked with the U.S. Space Force, DARPA and commercial aerospace firms on autonomous systems and digital integration platforms. The company specializes in plug-and-play architectures and data services for space vehicles and other mission-critical systems.

While founded before he joined Cornell, Falco said the university's ecosystem played a vital role in the evolution of the company. Namely, the company was supported by Cornell's New York State Consortium for Space Technology, which aims to bring new space capabilities from New York state to the U.S. Department of Defense. It was also an active participant and collaborator on projects at the Cornell-led Air Force Research Laboratory Mid-Atlantic Hub.

"The future of autonomous systems in sectors like aerospace and defense depends on our ability to model multi-scale phenomena and their cause-effect mechanisms with unprecedented accuracy and speed," Falco said. "Pasteur Labs' approach to combining AI with physics simulation creates exactly the kind of foundation our most demanding applications require."

The acquisition merges FOSAI's expertise in defense and aerospace with Pasteur's "Simulation Intelligence" platform. This integration can speed up research and development in the aerospace, automotive and energy sectors.

"This represents a natural evolution of our mission to bridge the gap between breakthrough simulation-based R&D and real-world impact," said Lavin in an announcement by Pasteur Labs. "FOSAI's deep expertise in dual-use software systems integration, combined with their proven ability to deliver mission-critical solutions, gives us the pathway to deploy our Simulation Intelligence Platform where it can create the most value: in domains that demand both cutting-edge innovation and unwavering reliability."

The acquisition comes as Pasteur Labs prepares to launch its platform publicly in 2025. The company's team includes veterans from NASA, Tesla, Nvidia and Ansys.

Falco said he is pleased his company has found a home where it can make an impact right away.

"Pasteur provides a strong foundation for our team and technology to continue building on top of, where we can serve an underserved need in aerospace - simulation testing," Falco said.