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Mojtaba Akhavan-Tafti, Associate Research Scientist, University of Michigan

Google’s proposed data center in orbit will face issues with space debris in an already crowded orbit

This rendering shows satellites orbiting Earth. yucelyilmaz/iStock via Getty Images

The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence and cloud services has led to a massive demand for computing power. The surge has strained data infrastructure, which requires lots of electricity to operate. A single, medium-sized data center here on Earth can consume enough electricity to power about 16,500 homes, with even larger facilities using as much as a small city.

Over the past few years, tech leaders have increasingly advocated for space-based AI infrastructure as a way to address the power requirements of data centers.

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