Berlin-based LiveEO has figured out what many satellite companies struggle with — how to turn raw space data into revenue. According to the company, the approach is to focus on specific problems rather than broad solutions.

According to LiveEO, most satellite operators build hardware, launch it into space, then struggle to sell raw data to companies that don't know what to use it for.

Finding focus in the forest

LiveEO's approach involved targeting one specific problem: helping electrical grid operators spot trees that could fall onto power lines. The company cites data showing nearly 30% of unplanned power outages are caused by trees falling onto overhead lines, with thousands of wildfires starting the same way.

Proving horizontal potential

But LiveEO's vision extends beyond power lines. To prove their technology stack could scale horizontally, they built two more applications on the same foundation.

SurfaceScout monitors pipelines for unauthorised construction — a surprisingly common problem that pipeline operators in North America, Nigeria, and Europe now use satellite data to prevent.

Their third product, TradeAware, tackles EU deforestation regulations. It helps companies prove their supply chains are deforestation-free, serving customers from Bauhaus to dog food resellers — a market the founder admits he never expected to enter.

LiveEO is quickly approaching €10M ARR with 120 employees and €50M raised.

Their approach offers a template: start narrow, solve real problems, then expand. As the founder stated: "The potential of Earth observation data is nearly unlimited."