tech
How an e-scooter founder raised $5 million to build space data centers
Orbital founder Euwyn Poon built 250,000 scooters at Spin. Now he wants to launch 10,000 space data centers.
TL;DR
- Orbital, founded by former e-scooter company Spin founder Euwyn Poon, has raised $5 million in seed funding.
- The company aims to build space data centers, with plans to deploy 10,000 satellites providing a distributed gigawatt of computing power.
- Orbital's business model is dependent on the economic feasibility of SpaceX's Starship for launching satellites into orbit.
- The company plans a demo flight this year with an Nvidia chip and aims to launch its first data-processing spacecraft in 2028.
- Orbital's goal is to offer piece-wise inference work, generating revenue with each satellite launched.
- Competitors like Starcloud and Cowboy Space Company are also developing space data center solutions, with some opting to build their own launch capabilities.