The flip side of SpaceX space data centers: what will happen to millions of AI satellites in five years

Large data centers are facing rising costs for electricity, cooling, and land. As a solution, companies are considering moving computing to space, where solar energy access is virtually unlimited and heat dissipation occurs via radiators. However, this concept faces significant technical and economic challenges. The main issues lie in the difficulty of upgrading hardware and the impossibility of performing repairs in orbit. The article analyzes the prospects of satellite data centers, examines the benefits of using orbital capacity for AI tasks, and assesses the risks of millions of satellites becoming space debris after a few years of operation. The author questions whether this strategy is justified given the complexity of maintaining infrastructure in vacuum and radiation conditions, and whether the effort is worth it in the long run for tech giants.