Iridium, Deutsche Telekom IoT, and Toyota demonstrate voice messaging over satellite via Iridium NTN Direct
Iridium Communications Inc. and Deutsche Telekom IoT (DT IoT) have announced the successful transmission of a voice message over Iridium NTN Direct℠ in a demonstration with Toyota. The milestone message was sent from a Toyota vehicle equipped with a Nordic Semiconductor nRF9151 development board, a Deutsche Telekom IoT SIM and transmitted entirely via the Iridium satellite network during the Telekom Satellite Day 2026. The demonstration follows the successful completion of technical integration and a global roaming agreement between Iridium and Deutsche Telekom IoT.
“The voice message sent over our network from a Toyota vehicle illustrates how Iridium NTN Direct will enhance consumer and commercial applications for people and assets operating outside traditional coverage areas,” said Matt Desch, CEO, Iridium. “This demonstration is a glimpse into the future of truly global, standards-based connectivity. Now is the time to begin integrating Iridium NTN Direct.”
The first message sent, “testing, testing, one, two, freeway,” successfully demonstrated standards-based NB-IoT voice messaging over Iridium’s fully operational low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation, and was supported by Fraunhofer’s AI-based NESC® Voice Codec. This capability will extend reliable connectivity beyond terrestrial coverage for automotive, logistics, remote utilities, smart agriculture, emergency response and other IoT applications that need to stay connected wherever they operate. Through Iridium NTN Direct, eligible DT IoT customers using compatible standards-based NB-IoT devices will be able to roam between terrestrial networks and Iridium satellites.
“The future of connectivity does not end where terrestrial networks reach their limits,” said Christian Schwalbe, CEO, Deutsche Telekom IoT. “Together with strong partners such as Iridium and many others, we are connecting mobile communications and satellite to form a global IoT infrastructure that keeps vehicles, machines and people reliably accessible. The demonstration with Toyota shows how technological innovation can be turned into concrete added value for our customers.”
Manfred Lutzky, Head of the Communications Audio Department at Fraunhofer IIS said, “We are very pleased to support this Automotive NTN Voice PoC by providing Fraunhofer's innovative AI-based NESC Voice Codec. NESC enables reliable, natural sounding and highly intelligible satellite voice services at scale by operating at bitrates of 1 kb/s or less.” He continued, “This demonstration with Iridium, Deutsche Telekom, Toyota and the other partners is a great example of cross-industry collaboration that will help to grow the satellite voice ecosystem.”
With the roaming agreement now completed, Deutsche Telekom IoT customers are poised to take advantage of the commercial availability of Iridium NTN Direct in Q4 2026. Selected European customers are already testing and developing applications on the Iridium network using Deutsche Telekom’s Global SIM.
Unlike regional satellite solutions that rely on cellular spectrum or are limited by geographic availability, Iridium NTN Direct is designed to extend coverage using Iridium’s existing global L-band LEO satellite constellation. The service leverages a network already operating worldwide, providing a path for mobile network operators, chipset manufacturers, and device makers to extend connectivity without building or maintaining additional terrestrial infrastructure.
For Deutsche Telekom IoT, the integration further strengthens its “network of networks” approach: combining terrestrial and non-terrestrial connectivity to provide customers with reliable IoT coverage wherever their assets operate.
