SpaceX wants to build a data center in space. Not a metaphorical one. An actual constellation of up to 1 million satellites capable of running AI workloads from low Earth orbit, powered by the sun and cooled by the vacuum of space.
The project is called Starmind, a name Elon Musk confirmed on June 23, 2026. It represents a dramatic pivot from SpaceX’s existing Starlink network, which currently has over 10,000 satellites beaming internet connectivity to Earth. Starmind isn’t about connecting people to the web. It’s about processing artificial intelligence computations where no one has processed them before.
From internet satellites to orbital supercomputers
Each Starmind satellite would carry onboard processors designed for machine learning inference, the process by which trained AI models generate outputs like text, images, or decisions. Solar arrays will provide the energy, and the natural vacuum handles cooling, eliminating the need for the kind of grid-scale power contracts that have turned data center operators into some of the largest electricity consumers on the planet.
The satellites will communicate with each other using optical inter-satellite laser links, the same technology that already connects Starlink satellites but repurposed here for shuttling AI data between orbital nodes and back down to Earth.
