Bezos predicts data centers in space within 20 years

"Jeff Bezos predicts that gigawatt data centers will be built in space within 10 to 20 years. According to him, these would ultimately perform better than data centers on Earth thanks to 24/7 access to solar energy. The concept of space data centers is gaining traction among large tech companies, but significant obstacles must be overcome. Maintenance in space remains cumbersome and costly. Upgrades are limited, and the risks of rocket launches remain high. Bezos acknowledges these challenges but does not see them as insurmountable."

"Bezos made these statements during a conversation at Italian Tech Week in Turin. He points to the exponentially growing demand for data centers, driven by AI and cloud computing. "These giant training clusters, those will be better built in space, because we have solar power there, 24/7. There are no clouds and no rain, no weather," said Bezos. The Amazon founder argues that space-based data centers could become cheaper than their counterparts on Earth within a few decades."

"Bezos places the development in the broader context of space industrialization. "It has already happened with weather satellites and communications satellites. The next step will be data centers and then other forms of manufacturing," he explains. According to the billionaire, the shift to orbital infrastructure should improve life on Earth. This fits in with his vision of space as an industrial extension of the planet."

Gigawatt-scale data centers in orbit could leverage continuous solar power and absence of weather to outperform terrestrial centers. Orbital facilities would face costly maintenance, limited upgrade paths, and high rocket-launch risks. Rapidly rising AI and cloud computing energy demand is pushing companies to consider radical alternatives beyond traditional terrestrial infrastructure. Over decades, space-based data centers could become cheaper than Earth-based equivalents if technological and logistical hurdles are overcome. The development aligns with a broader push toward space industrialization that follows satellites and aims to expand manufacturing and infrastructure off Earth to improve life on the planet.

Read at Techzine Global