Data centers in orbit: while Musk accelerates, Amazon dampens enthusiasm.
With the recent merger of SpaceX and xAI, Elon Musk aims to accelerate the race for space data centers, but the CEO of Amazon Web Services (AWS) calls orbital data centers "quite far" from reality. All the details
With the merger between SpaceX and xAI, the race for orbital data centers begins.
Elon Musk announced the acquisition of his artificial intelligence startup xAI by his aerospace company, aiming – among other goals – to develop data centers for artificial intelligence in orbit, exploiting solar energy and reducing launch costs.
The move comes at a time when growing demand for computing power is pushing several technology companies to explore alternatives to terrestrial data centers.
Alongside Musk's initiatives, other companies are working on designing space data centers that they say could eliminate some of the complexities of terrestrial data centers, such as overheating. Even Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos's aerospace company, is reportedly exploring the concept. Last fall, in an interview with FOX News , Google CEO Sundar Pichai said: "In that spirit, one of our goals on the Moon is to figure out how we will one day have data centers in space to better harness the sun's energy."
Yet according to the head of Amazon Web Services (Aws), the cloud division of the e-commerce giant founded by Bezos, orbital data centers are “quite far” from reality, Reuters reported yesterday.
All the details.
THE MERGER BETWEEN SPACEX AND XAI
Earlier this week, the American billionaire announced the acquisition of xAI, his artificial intelligence company that also owns the social network X, by his space company SpaceX, in order to realize his plan to build data centers in orbit. The integration aims to maximize synergies between space technologies and artificial intelligence systems, creating a company that, according to many observers, could reach an estimated value of $1.25 trillion.
According to Musk, the resulting company would be geared toward developing computing infrastructure in space, since "within 2 or 3 years, the cheapest way to generate AI computing will be in space." Along the same lines, Musk maintains that "in the long run, space-based AI is obviously the only way to scale."
THE DATA CENTER IN ORBIT PROJECT
The project envisions using the orbital environment for high-intensity computing activities, thanks to the availability of solar energy and launch costs expected to progressively decrease. The merger between SpaceX and xAI also aims to facilitate the creation of technological infrastructures capable of meeting the growing demand for computing power.
Musk stated in a statement that such data centers will be crucial since "the global demand for electricity for AI simply cannot be met with terrestrial solutions." According to this vision, developing energy and computing systems in orbit would become a necessary step to support the expansion of AI applications.
MUSK'S "SENSITIVE SUN" CONCEPT
The project, dubbed a "sentient sun" by Musk, is part of a broader vision of human expansion into space. The ambition is reportedly to establish "autonomous bases on the Moon" before "an entire civilization on Mars and, ultimately, expansion into the universe."
In this framework, the orbital project would also represent “a first step” towards a “Type II civilization,” a concept that recalls a development model based on the ability to exploit energy produced on a planetary scale and beyond.
According to the SpaceX boss, “The global demand for AI-powered electricity cannot be met with terrestrial solutions, even in the short term, without imposing hardship on communities and the environment,” further reiterating that “space-based AI is clearly the only path to long-term growth.”
CHALLENGES FOR TERRESTRIAL DATA CENTERS
The exponential growth of artificial intelligence requires enormous amounts of computing power and cooling, straining the capacity of terrestrial data centers. Therefore, several startups are working on designing space data centers that they say could eliminate some of the complexities of terrestrial data centers, such as overheating, Reuters reports.
GOOGLE'S SUNCATCHER PROJECT
Alphabet, through Google, has also launched similar initiatives. In November, the Mountain View giant led by Sundar Pichai announced Project Suncatcher, an orbital data center project that, according to Big G, could be the subject of test launches as early as next year, Reuters reports.
AMAZON WEB SERVICES SKEPTICISM
However, not all major technology companies share the same assessment of the timeframe for building space data centers.
Amazon's top cloud computing executive said space data centers are "quite a long way off" from becoming a reality, despite several startups and the company's founder, Jeff Bezos, pursuing the idea, the international news agency reports.
AWS CEO Matt Garman, speaking at the Cisco AI Summit in San Francisco, emphasized that the challenges of sending servers, satellites, and other equipment into orbit make the idea extremely challenging to realize. "There aren't enough rockets yet to launch a million satellites, so we're pretty far from that," Garman said.
Furthermore, the head of Amazon's cloud division highlighted the economics of space launches: "If you think about the cost of a payload in space today, it's enormous." "It's not just an economic factor," the Amazon manager observed.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/spazio-e-difesa/data-center-in-orbita-se-musk-accelera-amazon-frena-gli-entusiasmi/ on Wed, 04 Feb 2026 15:28:09 +0000.