SpaceX’s rival AST SpaceMobile soars 1,300%; now comes the satellite launch

AST SpaceMobile Inc., the tiny telecom company that wants to compete with SpaceX, has become one of the hottest stocks in the world this year after soaring from $2 to $28 in just six months.

Now, it faces a key test on the road to vindicating its massive rally and proving skeptics wrong. On Thursday morning, AST is set to launch its first five commercial satellites into low-earth orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida, aboard a SpaceX rocket.