As companies pour billions into Earth-based AI infrastructure, Google is taking the data center race off-planet

The moonshot idea of putting AI data centers into outer space just moved one step closer to reality, despite doubts about its feasibility.

Last week, Google’s Project Suncatcher launched a refrigerator-sized satellite carrying four AI chips into orbit on a SpaceX rocket, in an early test of whether the technology behind today’s power-hungry data centers could someday operate in space.

The satellite, developed in partnership with Planet Labs, took off on Oct. 1 and is operating as expected, according to a Google blog post. The point of the mission is to see how Google’s custom TPU chips handle the intense vibrations of launch as well as the “radiation and thermal extremes of space,” the company said. The satellite will conduct experiments in low Earth orbit for about a year, the New York Times reported.

Google’s satellite is powered by solar panels that harness energy from the sun. Because space makes it difficult to dissipate heat using water or fans, Google’s researchers designed a system of heat pipes and radiators to keep the chips from overheating. Still, the satellite’s cooling capabilities mean Google will run their chips for 15 minutes at a time before shutting them down to cool off, NPR reported.

However early the experiment might be, the launch is a milestone for an emerging technology that has the potential to help meet AI’s growing demand for compute while avoiding the constraints on........

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