The July 16 mission expanded Amazon's newly established Project Kuiper internet constellation in low-Earth orbit from 54 satellites to 78.

Choosing SpaceX (which already operates Starlink, Kuiper’s main competitor) marks a shift from Amazon’s prior “launch-agnostic” stance. Amazon has contracted three Falcon 9 flights among 83 total launches across ULA, Arianespace, Blue Origin, and SpaceX to meet the schedule locked in by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

SpaceX launched Amazon’s third batch of Project Kuiper satellites at 2:30 a.m. Eastern time Wednesday from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, adding 24 satellites to Kuiper’s constellation.