The funding round, led by Benchmark and EQT Ventures, highlights growing investor interest in space infrastructure as AI’s energy demands strain Earth’s grids and data centers. Space systems can offer near-continuous solar power, giving them a potential advantage.

Starcloud plans an 88,000-satellite data center network. The new funds will support next-generation satellites, manufacturing growth, and future launch contracts as the company moves toward commercial operations. CEO Philip Johnston said major contracts are in place for Earth Observation and DOW satellites, with energy agreements for AI hyperscalers coming soon.

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Elon Musk’s SpaceX recently bought xAI and aims for a million-satellite orbital AI network. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin has similar ambitions. Starcloud is partnering with Nvidia, Amazon Web Services, and Google Cloud. In November, it launched a satellite with Nvidia’s H100 chip, completing AI training and inference in orbit. Another launch is planned for October using AWS Outposts.

High launch costs remain a challenge, but Starcloud expects prices to drop by 2028–29, making space-based data centers competitive with Earth-based facilities. With this funding, the company has now raised a total of $200 million, including earlier investment from Andreessen Horowitz and In-Q-Tel.