Just a moonshot? Google energy head claims data centers in space would cost up to 100x more than on Earth
Google is running AI chips in orbit, but its own data center energy chief says space data centers could, if scaled, cost up to 100x as much as building on Earth.
Google's global head of data center energy, Amanda Peterson Corio, has claimed that data centers in space could cost up to 100 times more than those built on Earth. This comment came after Google launched its first Suncatcher prototype, a satellite with a 1kW power capacity, which has been running AI models using a single TPUs. The real challenge for data centers on Earth, according to Corio, is not power, but rather permitting and grid interconnection studies.
She advises the industry to explore terrestrial options before considering space-based data centers. This statement comes at a critical time, as Google is testing orbital compute hardware, including its Hello World milestone, which involved an onboard Gemma 4 model running on a TPU in space. The project is supported by SpaceX and Alphabet, with Google reportedly in talks with SpaceX regarding future deployments.
However, skeptics argue that orbital data centers would be significantly more expensive, with estimates suggesting up to a century-long payback period for the increased cost. SpaceX's IPO paperwork also highlighted the significant technical complexities and unproven technologies associated with orbital data centers.
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