Link: Google has a ‘moonshot’ plan for AI data centers in space

Google has unveiled Project Suncatcher, a research initiative to explore space-based, solar-powered AI data centers. This could provide a near-limitless source of energy for AI operations without the environmental costs associated with Earth-based data centers.

The company's senior director, Travis Beals, suggested that space might be the optimal venue for expanding AI compute capabilities. A related preprint paper, yet to be peer-reviewed, shares preliminary insights into this ambitious project.

Google plans to employ Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) on satellites, which could be more productive with nearly continuous solar energy. These satellites would need to form tight networks, capable of high-speed data transfer, to match the performance of terrestrial data centers.

However, Google faces significant challenges such as ensuring the TPUs can tolerate space radiation and arranging satellites to avoid collisions. Successfully addressing these could reshape how AI compute power is scaled.

Cost analyses suggest that by the mid-2030s, the financial outlay for these cosmic data centers could align with terrestrial ones. Google aims to launch test satellites by 2027 in collaboration with Planet.

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