For all the hype about data centers in the space, there aren’t many GPUs out there. As this begins to change, the near-term business of orbital computing is beginning to take shape.
The largest computing cluster currently in orbit was launched in January by Canada’s Kepler Communications and boasts nearly 40 Nvidia Orin edge processors on 10 operational satellites, all linked by laser communications.
The company now has 18 customers, and on Monday announced the newest, Sophia Space, will test the software. unique orbital computer Aboard the Kepler constellation.
Experts expect we won’t see large-scale data centers like those envisioned by SpaceX or Blue Origin until 2030. The first step will be to process data collected in orbit to improve the capabilities of space sensors used by private companies and government agencies.
Kepler sees itself not as a data center company, but as an infrastructure for applications in space, CEO Mina Mitri told TechCrunch. It wants to be a layer that provides network services to other satellites in space or to drones and aircraft in the sky below.
On the other hand, Sophia is developing passively cooled space computers, which may solve one of the problems. main problems for large-scale data centers in orbit: to keep powerful processors from overheating without having to install and operate heavy, expensive active cooling systems.
In the new partnership, Sophia will upload its custom operating system to one of Kepler’s satellites and attempt to run and configure it on six GPUs on two spacecraft. This type of activity is desk shares in a ground data center, and this is the first time in orbit. Making sure the software works in orbit will be a key de-risking exercise for Sophia ahead of the planned first satellite launch in late 2027.
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It helps prove the usefulness of the partnership network for Kepler. Currently, it carries and processes data collected by payloads loaded from Earth or placed on its spacecraft. But as the sector matures, the company expects to begin connecting with third-party satellites to provide networking and processing services.
Mitri says satellite companies are now planning future assets around this model, pointing to the benefits of payload processing for sensors that need more power, such as synthetic aperture radar. The US military is a major customer for such work as it develops a new missile defense system based on satellites that detect and track threats. Kepler has already demonstrated space-to-air laser communication in a demo for the US government.
This kind of edge processing—dealing with the data it collects to provide faster responses—is where orbital data centers will first prove their worth. This vision sets Sophia and Kepler apart from established space companies like SpaceX and others Blue originor startups like Star cloud and Aetherflux are raising significant capital to focus on large-scale data centers with data center-style processors.
“Because we believe it’s more about the output than the training, we want more distributed GPUs that deliver the output, not just one super-powerful GPU with training workload capacity,” Mitri told TechCrunch. “If this thing uses kilowatts of power and you’re only running 10% of the time, it’s not very useful. In our case, our GPUs are running 100%.”
And once these technologies are proven in orbit, anything is possible. Sophia CEO Rob DeMillo points to Wisconsin’s ban on data center construction last week, which some lawmakers in Congress are pushing back. Anything that limits ground-based data centers makes a space-based alternative more attractive in their eyes.
“There are no more data centers in this country,” Demillo said. “It’s going to get weird from here.”
