Crusoe partners with Starcloud to launch the first public cloud in space by 2027. This move extends Crusoe’s energy-first AI strategy to orbit, using abundant solar power to eliminate terrestrial constraints.
Breaking New Ground in Cloud Computing
Crusoe, the industry’s first vertically integrated AI infrastructure provider, today announced a groundbreaking partnership with Starcloud—the first company building AI data centers in space. The collaboration will make Crusoe the first public cloud provider to run workloads in outer space.
Under this agreement, Crusoe will deploy Crusoe Cloud on a Starcloud satellite scheduled to launch in late 2026. The company plans to offer limited GPU capacity from space by early 2027, pioneering an entirely new paradigm for what they call “AI factories.”
This isn’t just about novelty. It’s about solving real problems.
Why Space Matters for AI Infrastructure
The partnership marks a pivotal moment in the cloud and AI industry as it pushes beyond the limitations of Earth-based infrastructure. The goal? Leverage the unique advantages that space offers—particularly when it comes to energy.
The collaboration addresses the rapidly growing energy demands of artificial intelligence by co-locating compute resources with the most abundant and sustainable energy source available: the sun. In space, solar power is constant, unlimited, and doesn’t compete with terrestrial energy needs.
“At Crusoe, we believe that space will ultimately matter to the future of computing because it enables new solutions to a key scaling constraint for AI infrastructure, which is sourcing abundant, consistent and clean energy. Since our founding, Crusoe has specialized on co-locating compute infrastructure with novel energy sources,” said Cully Cavness, co-founder, president and COO of Crusoe. “By partnering with Starcloud, we will extend our energy-first approach from Earth to the next frontier: outer space.”
How Orbital Data Centers Actually Work
Starcloud’s orbital data center is a self-contained, satellite-based computing platform powered by dedicated solar arrays. Think of it as a traditional data center, but floating in orbit instead of sitting on the ground.
This design eliminates the need for terrestrial energy grids, cooling infrastructure, and land use—offering a high-performance computing environment with unparalleled scalability. The satellite launching in 2026 will feature a dedicated module running the Crusoe Cloud platform, enabling customers to deploy and operate AI workloads from space-based infrastructure.
The advantages are significant. No competition for grid power. No real estate costs. No cooling systems struggling against summer heat waves. Just consistent, abundant solar energy and the vacuum of space for thermal management.
A Perfect Alignment of Vision
“Having Crusoe as the foundational cloud provider on our platform is a perfect alignment of vision and execution,” said Philip Johnston, CEO of Starcloud. “Crusoe’s expertise in building rugged, efficient, and scalable computing solutions makes them the ideal partner to pioneer this new era. Together, we are building not just a data center in space, but a new category of cloud computing that will unlock extraordinary possibilities for research, discovery, and innovation.”
The partnership extends beyond the initial 2026 satellite launch. Crusoe and Starcloud have aligned to power larger data centers in space as computing infrastructure scales over time. This represents Crusoe’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of what’s possible across AI infrastructure and clean energy, providing customers with a truly unique platform for the most demanding computational tasks.
What This Means for the Future
This isn’t science fiction—it’s happening. Starcloud will be the first to launch an NVIDIA H100 GPU to space in November 2025, which is 100x more powerful GPU (AI) compute than has been in space before.
The implications reach far beyond a single satellite. As AI workloads continue to grow exponentially, the energy demands become increasingly difficult to meet on Earth. Space offers a solution that doesn’t compete with terrestrial energy needs, doesn’t require massive cooling infrastructure, and provides virtually unlimited room for expansion.
For researchers, developers, and companies pushing the boundaries of AI, this partnership opens up entirely new possibilities. It’s about addressing a fundamental constraint—energy—by going where energy is most abundant.
