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Editorial Advisory Board

  • Professor Andrea M. Armani, University of Southern California
  • Ruti Ben-Shlomi, Ph.D., LightSolver
  • James Butler, Ph.D., Hamamatsu
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  • Justin Sigley, Ph.D., AmeriCOM
  • Professor Birgit Stiller, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, and Leibniz University of Hannover
  • Professor Stephen Sweeney, University of Glasgow
  • Mohan Wang, Ph.D., University of Oxford
  • Professor Xuchen Wang, Harbin Engineering University
  • Professor Stefan Witte, Delft University of Technology

NextNav Successfully Demonstrates Positioning Reference Signal-Based PNT Technology

RESTON, Va., Feb. 26, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NextNav (Nasdaq: NN) today announced the successful completion of lab and field demonstrations of its innovative Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) solution based on Positioning Reference Signal (PRS) standards in 5G waveforms. With 5G and PRS standards already in place, this validates that NextNav PNT technology solutions can enable a widescale commercial 5G-based PNT solution that provides a resilient terrestrial complement and backup to traditional GPS signals.

The demonstrations culminated in a successful field test using a prototype network operating on NextNav’s existing spectrum in Palo Alto, California. These tests validated the effectiveness of NextNav's 5G PRS-based PNT solution, demonstrating precise timing synchronization and robust positioning capabilities, establishing a foundation for widespread commercial deployment.

“This is a major milestone towards building a terrestrial complement and backup to GPS built on the back of a global standard,” said NextNav Co-Founder and CTO, Arun Raghupathy. “By leveraging a 5G network, NextNav is proving that it is able to develop scalable 3D PNT capabilities built with technology using standards compliant PRS signals.”

NextNav’s innovative next generation technology provides a rapid and cost-effective approach to scaling resilient PNT solutions and is part of the company’s mission to build a widescale terrestrial PNT solution working with 5G infrastructure and device providers. By demonstrating that PRS can fulfill this requirement, NextNav moves closer to the vision outlined in its rulemaking petition before the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). In its petition, NextNav proposed that the FCC reconfigure the Lower 900 MHz band to enable a 5G-based terrestrial 3D PNT as both a complement and backup to GPS while also supporting 5G broadband deployment and use.

Few challenges are more pressing than integrating greater resiliency into critical terrestrial PNT technologies while simultaneously freeing up more spectrum for 5G broadband.

Mobile World Congress Barcelona 2025

NextNav will host discussions in its dedicated meeting room at MWC 2025, bringing together industry leaders to advance a 5G-based terrestrial 3D PNT capability built on a global standard. To join these conversations, meet our team, and learn more, request a meeting here.

About NextNav

NextNav Inc. (Nasdaq: NN) is a leader in next-generation positioning, navigation and timing (PNT), enabling a whole new ecosystem of applications and services that rely upon 3D geolocation and PNT technology. Powered by low-band licensed spectrum, NextNav’s positioning and timing technologies deliver accurate, reliable, and resilient 3D PNT solutions for critical infrastructure, GPS resiliency and commercial use cases.

For more information, please visit https://nextnav.com/ or follow NextNav on X https://x.com/NextNav or LinkedIn. 

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on NextNav’s management’s current expectations and beliefs, as well as a number of assumptions concerning future events.

Source: NN-FIN

Media Contact:
NNmedia@nextnav.com


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