Data storage and resilience firm Lonestar has partnered with semiconductor and storage company Phison to deploy a data center infrastructure aboard a SpaceX rocket, set for a lunar journey on Wednesday.
The mission involves launching Phison’s Pascari storage—solid-state drives (SSDs) designed specifically for data centers—along with data from Lonestar’s clients on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, aiming to land on March 4. This endeavor marks the inception of a groundbreaking lunar data center, the first of its kind, which the companies plan to enhance over time, eventually accommodating a petabyte of storage.
Chris Stott, CEO, founder, and chair of Lonestar, shared with TechCrunch that the concept of establishing a space-based data center was conceived in 2018, well before the current surge in data center demand driven by AI. He mentioned that clients are exploring off-Earth data storage options to shield against risks like climate catastrophes and cyberattacks.
“Data is humanity’s most valuable asset, second only to our very existence,” Stott remarked. “Many perceive data as the new oil. In reality, it holds even greater significance.”
Stott indicated that collaborating with Phison for the creation of a space data center was a logical decision. Phison already supplies storage solutions for space missions, including NASA’s Perseverance Rover on Mars. Additionally, the company provides a service known as Imagine Plus, which focuses on developing bespoke storage solutions for specialized undertakings.
“We were thrilled when Chris reached out to us,” stated Michael Wu, Phison’s general manager and president, during an interview with TechCrunch. “We adapted a standard product to meet their specific needs for this project, marking the start of an exhilarating journey.”
Lonestar and Phison formed a partnership in 2021, working diligently to create SSD storage specifically designed for space use. Stott emphasized that years of testing preceded their first launch, highlighting the necessity for robustness since repairs are not easily executed once the technology is in orbit.
“This underscores the importance of SSDs,” Stott noted. “With no moving parts, it’s remarkable technology that enables us to support these governments and, hopefully, almost every government and corporation globally moving forward.”
Stott confirmed the technology has been ready for launch since 2023, with a successful test launch occurring in early 2024.
The recent launch carried diverse types of customer data, including materials from several governments focused on disaster recovery and a space agency experimenting with a large language model. Even the band Imagine Dragons contributed by sending a music video for one of their tracks featured in the Starfield space game soundtrack.
Lonestar is not the only entity exploring the prospect of space-based data centers. Another startup, Lumen Orbit, emerged from Y Combinator’s Summer 2024 batch, and recently secured one of the cohort’s most discussed seed rounds, raising over $21 million and subsequently rebranding as Starcloud.
As the demand for hardware fueled by AI continues to grow, it’s probable that more businesses will seek out space-centric storage solutions, offering virtually limitless storage capacity and solar energy—advantages that conventional Earth-bound data centers cannot compete with.
Looking ahead, Lonestar envisions collaborating with satellite manufacturer Sidus Space to construct six data storage spacecraft, with plans to launch them between 2027 and 2030.
“The level of professionalism we’re witnessing is astonishing,” Stott expressed. “This is not the era of the Apollo program. Back then, Apollo flight computers operated on just 2 kilobytes of RAM and 36 kilobytes of storage. Now, we’re conducting this mission using 1 Gigabyte of RAM and 8 terabytes of storage with Phison Pascari. The advancements are tremendous.”
Compiled by Techarena.au.
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