Google is in talks with Elon Musk-owned SpaceX for a rocket-launch deal to place orbital data centers in space, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal citing sources familiar with the discussions. Space-based data centers are emerging as a potential solution to traditional data centers, which require substantial energy. The search engine giant is also in discussions with other rocket launch companies, a source told the publication.
Potential Partnership Amid Competition
If formalized, the deal would put the two companies in partnership as they gear up to compete in orbital data centers, an unproven technology that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has described as the next frontier for his rocket company. While Google and SpaceX are betting on space data centers, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman holds a different view.
Altman Calls Space Data Centers 'Ridiculous'
Both Google CEO Sundar Pichai and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk have previously discussed plans to build space data centers. In a Fox News interview last year, Pichai stated: "We'll send tiny racks of machines and have them in satellites, test them out, and then start scaling from there." He added, "There's no doubt to me that a decade or so away, we'll be viewing it as a more normal way to build data centers." Musk has also said that space will be the cheapest place for AI data centers within the next three years.
However, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman disagrees with both tech leaders. During his visit to India earlier this year, Altman called the idea of putting data centers in space 'ridiculous.' Speaking at a New Delhi event, he said: "I honestly think the idea with the current landscape of putting data centers in space is ridiculous." He acknowledged that orbital data centers could "make sense someday" but added, "Space is great for a lot of things. Orbital data centers are not something that's going to matter at scale this decade."
Google's Prototype Satellites by 2027
In 2025, Google announced plans to launch prototype satellites by 2027 as part of a moonshot initiative called Project Suncatcher. The company is working with Planet Labs to build those satellites. Notably, Google has been an early investor in SpaceX and currently owns 6.1% of the company.
