Corporate & technology
Avealto
We took a UK tech start-up's trademark dispute with Airbus and turned it into a Times exclusive, putting a 10-person company in front of a business audience of 24 million — then, three years later, drove a fresh wave of trade and national coverage around its $50m production funding round.
An innovative British start-up developing a fleet of high-altitude unmanned air balloons to deliver long-duration telecommunications services to rural, remote, maritime and aeronautical customers.
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24M+ monthly readers
UK start-up accuses Airbus of 'low trick' in trademark row
24M+ monthly readersUK start-up accuses Airbus of 'low trick' in trademark row
214M+ monthly readers
How worried should we be about menacing spies in the sky?
The Gap Between Fibre and Satellite: How Avealto Plans to Connect the Three Billion People Neither Can Reach
Jobs boost as £37m fundraising bid will see factory built at Lydd Airport for Avealto - a rival to Elon Musk's Starlink
The brief
Avealto first appointed Bridgehead on a project basis in 2023 to raise public awareness of its trademark dispute with Airbus, following Airbus rebranding its competing platform as 'Aalto'. The goal: generate scrutiny of a multinational behaving aggressively toward a British innovator. The relationship continued into 2026, when Bridgehead supported the announcement of Avealto's $50m production funding round.
What they needed
Draw attention to the trademark dispute with Airbus.
Protect Avealto's commercial position in the emerging high-altitude connectivity market.
Generate public and political scrutiny of Airbus' rebrand.
Highlight Avealto's economic contribution as a UK-based technology innovator.
The approach
A targeted media programme in 2023 focused on the economic and commercial implications of the trademark dispute, followed by a 2026 trade and business media push around Avealto's move into production.
2023 — The Times exclusive
We secured an exclusive with The Times business section, ensuring the trademark dispute story broke with credibility and reached a high-value business audience before any competitor coverage.
2023 — UK innovation framing
Press materials highlighted the impact on a UK-based technology start-up, positioning Avealto's potential economic contribution to frame the dispute in terms of job creation and British innovation.
2023 — Political stakeholder outreach
We supported outreach to relevant political stakeholders to reinforce the public interest dimension of the trademark case.
2026 — Funding round announcement
We briefed satellite, aviation and business trade press ahead of Avealto's $50m production funding round, securing same-day coverage across the outlets that matter most to investors and industry partners.
The results
pieces of coverage
readers reached
The coverage
24M+ monthly readersBusiness
UK start-up accuses Airbus of 'low trick' in trademark row
The Times · 2023
214M+ monthly readersTechnology
How worried should we be about menacing spies in the sky?
Daily Mail · 2023
Funding
The Gap Between Fibre and Satellite: How Avealto Plans to Connect the Three Billion People Neither Can Reach
IBTimes UK · 2026
Local impact
Jobs boost as £37m fundraising bid will see factory built at Lydd Airport for Avealto - a rival to Elon Musk's Starlink
Kent Online · 2026
The breakthrough
One Times exclusive that put a 10-person start-up on Airbus' radar — then a funding round that proved the model works.
By securing the story as an exclusive with The Times, we ensured Avealto's position was heard by the business audience that mattered most, before Airbus could control the narrative. Subsequent trade coverage cemented visibility within the aerospace and telecommunications sectors. Three years on, the same media relationships delivered same-day coverage of Avealto's $50m production funding round across trade and national press.
Seen in
On the record
The coverage does the talking.
24M+ monthly readersBusiness · The Times
UK start-up accuses Airbus of 'low trick' in trademark row
214M+ monthly readersTechnology · Daily Mail
How worried should we be about menacing spies in the sky?
Funding · International Business Times UK
The Gap Between Fibre and Satellite: How Avealto Plans to Connect the Three Billion People Neither Can Reach
Local impact · Kent Online
Jobs boost as £37m fundraising bid will see factory built at Lydd Airport for Avealto - a rival to Elon Musk's Starlink
The impact
Exclusive with The Times reaching 24M+ monthly readers on a commercially sensitive story.
Elevated Avealto's national business profile during an active trademark dispute.
Reinforced positioning as a UK-based technology innovator in the high-altitude connectivity sector.
Generated public visibility that strengthened Avealto's position in the dispute.
2026 update: Avealto's $50m production funding round (UK manufacturing at Lydd Airport, a September prototype demonstration, and its first commercial network in Southeast Asia) generated fresh trade and national coverage within 24 hours, including Advanced Television, IBTimes UK, Manufacturing Management, Aviation International News, SatNews and Insider Media — plus regional coverage from Kent Online on the local jobs created by the new Lydd Airport facility.
The outcome
A single well-placed exclusive that turned a David-vs-Goliath legal dispute into national business news, and gave a 10-person start-up leverage against a multinational. The relationship continues: Avealto's 2026 funding round drew a fresh wave of trade and national press.
