Google launches Project Suncatcher satellite AI haiku reveals power shortfall
Google launched its first Project Suncatcher satellite on October 1, 2026, to process AI data in space, a pretty wild idea!
But there's a catch: the satellite doesn't have enough power yet. It can only run one of its four AI chips (TPUs) for about 20 minutes at a time, as its first test showed when it created and sent an AI-generated haiku back to earth.
Google plans 2 satellites in 2027
The satellite took off on October 1, 2026, via SpaceX and is mainly testing how well these AI chips handle tough space conditions like radiation.
Google isn't stopping here: it plans to launch two more satellites in 2027 with better power systems and optical links that allow satellites to communicate with each other.
The big goal? Build networks of solar-powered satellites looking toward the 2030s that could make large-scale space-based AI computing a real thing.