SpaceX Plans to Launch Google AI Chips Into Orbit for Space-Based Data Centers

SpaceX plans to carry Google AI chips into orbit aboard its Transporter-18 mission, giving Alphabet its first in-space test of hardware designed for a possible future network of orbital AI data centers.

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SpaceX to Launch Google AI Chips

A Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled to carry a prototype Project Suncatcher satellite from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The Transporter-18 rideshare mission includes 130 payloads, with the Google project among the spacecraft heading to low Earth orbit.

Google built the mission with Planet to experiment with Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) in space. Engineers will test the chips to see how they will cope with vibration during launch, radiation, and cooling the computing hardware in a vacuum.

“This first launch is about seeing what works, identifying points of failure,” Google executive Travis Beals said. The company will use findings from the mission to guide future Project Suncatcher tests.

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Google Tests Space-Based AI Computing

Project Suncatcher investigates the potential to enable large AI workloads in orbit using solar power. Google estimates that satellites in low Earth orbit could receive enough sunlight to generate considerably more solar power than comparable panels on the ground.

However, Google remains in the testing phase. Cooling, radiation resistance and communication between satellites are among the technical challenges that need to be addressed before orbital computing can operate at data-center scale.

The project comes as technology companies seek more computing capacity for AI. As earlier reported by CoinGape, Anthropic has agreements that could reach USD 84.5 billion for Nvidia-based computing capacity through 2029.

SpaceX Stock Holds Near $150 After Rejection Above $153

At the time of writing, SpaceX shares traded around $150 as investors followed the Transporter-18 mission. SPCX closed September 30 at $150.86, up 1.09%, after trading between $147.75 and $152.58 during the session.

The stock remained above its $135 IPO price from June. The intraday chart showed SpaceX stock briefly climbing toward $153.5 before facing a sharp rejection.

The pullback action created lower highs and lower lows and resulted in the first resistance zone being created at $150.7 to $151.1. A move above that range would bring approximately $152.1 into focus, followed by resistance between $153.4 and $153.7.

Buyers have appeared around $149.7 to $150. A sustained break below $149.7 would put the $149 area in focus, while a recovery above $151 followed by $152.1 would improve the short-term price structure.