Unveiling Project Suncatcher: The Moonshot Scaling AI Compute in Space

Anna Jensen -

Have you ever stared at the night sky, pondering how those distant stars could be the key to humanity’s future technological leaps? Project Suncatcher invites us to dream big, diving into the cosmos to unravel a scalable AI infrastructure that does just that — powered by the celestial powerhouse, our Sun.

Embracing the Final Energy Frontier

Astronauts have long gazed upon Earth from orbit, mesmerized by the endless energy pouring in from the sun. Project Suncatcher seeks to harness this abundance, featuring solar-powered constellations equipped with Google TPUs, interconnected by free-space optical links. The endeavor holds the promise of drastically minimizing our reliance on Earth’s resources while amplifying machine learning compute capabilities.

Forging New Paths with Innovative System Design

Imagine satellites locked in a synchronized celestial dance, residing in a dawn-dusk sun-synchronous orbit, endlessly bathing in sunlight. This design optimizes solar energy collection and revolutionizes how we perceive AI infrastructure. According to Google Research, successful scale requires overcoming challenges like achieving data center-scale inter-satellite links and maintaining tightly-clustered satellite formations.

To equal terrestrial data centers, the project’s satellite constellations must engage with inter-satellite links achieving tens of terabits per second in bandwidth. Through dense wavelength-division multiplexing and spatial multiplexing transceivers, the celestial network plans to overcome barriers, making space a new playground for scalable AI experiments.

High-bandwidth demands lead to the creation of compact satellite formations, requiring precise control through Earth’s gravitational fields. Advanced physics models, insights from Hill-Clohessy-Wiltshire equations, and JAX-based simulations have laid a foundation for this cosmic ballet. The tight choreography ensures minimal station-keeping, conserving resources while maintaining stability.

Enduring the Cosmic Storm

Orbiting space means enduring harsh radiation. Trillium, Google’s v6e Cloud TPU, has faced proton beam tests, emerging resilient. Despite minor irregularities, these components demonstrate surprising toughness, anticipatory of lasting five years within the cosmic arena. The project’s science optimism propels it forward.

Economically Reaching for the Stars

Can space be cost-competitive? With anticipated mid-2030 pricing drops under $200/kg, space-based data centers may offer economic advantages mirroring terrestrial equivalents. This transformation could soon bear fruits of equally-priced (and potentially superior) AI computation outputs when compared to Earthly infrastructure.

Looking to Future Constellations

Progressing from theory to realization, Project Suncatcher is designing prototype missions scheduled by 2027, in partnership with Planet. These satellites will validate theoretical models, leveraging optical inter-satellite links for distributed ML tasks in real-time. It’s a small step for technology, a giant leap for AI space infrastructure.

Will the celestial expanse become the new Silicon Valley? With Project Suncatcher marking a trail, the skies may hold transformative answers for Earth’s emerging technological era.