Google will test whether AI hardware can survive orbit
Google’s Project Suncatcher is preparing an orbital test of its TPU chips, the first step toward putting machine-learning infrastructure in space instead of relying only on Earth-based facilities. A prototype satellite, built with Planet for SpaceX’s Transporter-18 rideshare mission, will measure how the hardware handles launch forces, radiation, and extreme temperatures. Google says low Earth orbit can provide up to eight times more solar power than Earth, but its Trillium TPUs have so far only survived ground tests equivalent to more than five years of space radiation.