SpaceX has filed an application with…

SpaceX has filed an application with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) seeking approval to deploy up to 1 million solar-powered satellites designed to function as orbital data centers for artificial intelligence (AI) workloads.

The filing, submitted late January 2025 (around January 30–31), proposes a constellation of satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO) at altitudes between 500 and 2,000 km, with orbits in 30-degree and sun-synchronous inclinations to maximize sunlight exposure. These satellites would harness near-constant solar power—achieving over 99% solar availability in certain configurations—eliminating much of the need for batteries and enabling highly efficient, low-maintenance operation.

Key points from SpaceX's proposal and related reporting:

Purpose: To meet the explosive growth in AI-driven data demands by providing massive, distributed computing capacity optimized for AI models, inference, and related applications.

Advantages claimed:
Transformative cost and energy efficiency compared to terrestrial data centers.

Reduced environmental impact (no land use, minimal water for cooling, lower emissions).
Inter-satellite laser links for communication, potentially integrating with the existing Starlink network for data routing to Earth.

Grand vision: SpaceX describes this as "a first step towards becoming a Kardashev II-level civilization" — one capable of harnessing a significant portion of the Sun's energy — while supporting AI for billions of users and advancing humanity's multi-planetary future.

Deployment reliance: The plan leans heavily on SpaceX's Starship rocket for launching large numbers of satellites at low cost.