One of the biggest arguments against data centers is how much power they require -- and whether the power grid can reasonably accommodate them. Data centers are estimated to consume 4% to 5% of electricity in the U.S. today, but that's expected to increase to as much as 17% by 2030, according to data from the Electric Power Research Institute.
Blue Origin and Space Exploration Technologies are among the companies that have proposed orbital data centers -- harnessing the power of solar energy to avoid tapping into Earth's resources. But it's Alphabet (GOOG +1.20%) (GOOGL +1.34%) that is taking the first concrete step by a major tech company toward that goal. On Oct. 1, the company is planning to launch an experimental satellite outfitted with Google's tensor processing units (TPUs) and solar panels. The launch, which is part of the company's Project Suncatcher, is part of the company's effort to eventually put data centers in orbit to run artificial intelligence programs.
The satellite, which will be put into orbit from a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, will have the computing power of one data center server and operate on 1 kilowatt of solar power to answer simple AI queries. The satellite is expected to operate for a year.
Image source: Getty Images.
What is Project Suncatcher?
Google announced Project Suncatcher a year ago as a long-term project to determine if space could support the infrastructure to power machine learning and AI. Google scientists believe that satellites can generate eight times as much solar power as solar panels on Earth because they receive near-constant sunlight. By linking multiple satellite constellations, the company believes it can manage large AI workloads from orbit.
It's a similar effort that SpaceX plans to make with its Starmind AI satellites, powered by Nvidia chips, which SpaceX believes will begin deploying in the fourth quarter of 2027. SpaceX has plans to deploy up to 1 million orbital data centers, according to CEO Elon Musk.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has said orbital data centers are a reasonable long-term goal, although he thinks timelines of two or three years are a "little ambitious." However, his Blue Origin space company has filed plans to deploy more than 51,000 data-processing satellites in low-Earth orbit.
Google's Oct. 1 launch will determine if the chips can withstand the vibration and acceleration that comes with a 10-minute rocket trip from launch to orbit. Once the satellite is in position, engineers will learn whether solar events, cosmic rays, and radiation affect the TPU's ability to function. And engineers will need to find a way to cool the chips in space before they overheat without relying on airflow.
In an interview with The New York Times, Google's senior vice president for research, James Manyika, said the company is still in the early phases of its testing and research. "We don't expect, to be perfectly frank, that we'll have anything usefully operational in the next few years," he said.
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Why should investors pay attention to Project Suncatcher?
While Google is tempering expectations about the launch, it's clear that the ambitious space-faring project is building on Alphabet's existing AI investments -- Google Cloud, Gemini, and its TPU chips that are emerging as a viable alternative to Nvidia's GPUs.
Orbital computing is a long way away, but it could eventually be a significant expansion of Google's AI infrastructure. And the company is undoubtedly taking a leading role in testing the technology.
Investors shouldn't expect any near-term financial contributions from Project Suncatcher. But it is another example of Alphabet's deep pockets and willingness to compete across all facets of AI. If the company can eventually figure out how to commercialize the effort, including providing reliable hardware, connectivity, and cooling, then Project Suncatcher could be a significant long-term catalyst for Alphabet stock.
