A batch of high-performance computing hardware is entering low Earth orbit today as part of a venture to relocate data centers into space. Google is deploying four of its Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) aboard a Planet Labs satellite using a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket for the first orbital test of Project Suncatcher, its space-based AI infrastructure initiative.

Google estimates the economics of orbital computing become viable when launch costs drop to approximately $200/kg by 2035, making the advancement of SpaceX's Starship essential to the project. While Google pursues solar-powered AI in orbit, SpaceX is also building its own orbital compute platform to address terrestrial data center constraints.