Anchor
Starcloud raises fresh capital to build AI data centers in orbit
New CapabilitiesNVIDIA-backed startup lands a $250 million round to build its largest orbital data-center spacecraft as Earth-based launch slots tighten
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Overview
Updated 1 hour agoA dorm-fridge-sized box carrying a single NVIDIA chip ran an AI model in space last year. On August 21, 2026, the startup behind it, Starcloud, said investors handed it $250 million to build something far bigger.
The raise values the Redmond, Washington company at $2.3 billion and pulls chipmaker NVIDIA onto its cap table. The money funds a larger factory and Starcloud-3, its biggest planned orbital data center. The bet: run power-hungry AI in orbit, using constant sunlight for electricity and the cold of space for cooling.
Why it matters
If AI compute moves to orbit, its soaring power and cooling needs shift off Earth's strained grids, but only if launch capacity and economics hold.
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Key Indicators
$250M
New funding
Series A extension led by investment firm Manhattan West.
$2.3B
Valuation
Up from $1.1 billion at its March 2026 round.
$450M
Total raised
Cumulative funding since the company's 2024 founding.
1
GPUs flown so far
A single NVIDIA H100 reached orbit aboard Starcloud-1 in November 2025.
88,000
Satellites in the long-term plan
The company's stated goal of roughly 20 gigawatts of orbital compute.
Related Media
Philip Johnston, Co-Founder and CEO of Starcloud, September 2025
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People Involved
Organizations Involved
Starcloud
Space technology startup
Raised $250 million to scale orbital data centers
A Redmond, Washington startup building AI data centers that operate in low Earth orbit.
Nvidia Corporation
Semiconductor company
New investor in Starcloud
The chipmaker whose graphics processors power most AI training and now sit at the center of Starcloud's hardware.
Manhattan West
Investment firm
Lead investor in the $250 million round
The Los Angeles investment firm that led Starcloud's Series A extension.
Timeline
January 2024 August 2026
5 events
Latest: Yesterday
Tap a bar to jump to that date
-
$250 million extension, NVIDIA joins
Latest FundingStarcloud adds $250 million at a $2.3 billion valuation, led by Manhattan West with NVIDIA and Cisco Investments. Total funding reaches $450 million.
-
$170 million Series A
FundingStarcloud raises $170 million at a $1.1 billion valuation to expand its orbital plans.
-
AI models run in space
MilestoneStarcloud-1 runs AI inference in orbit and trains a small language model, showing the hardware works in space.
-
First NVIDIA H100 reaches orbit
MilestoneStarcloud-1 launches on a SpaceX rocket carrying a single NVIDIA H100, a computer roughly the size of a small refrigerator.
-
Starcloud founded
OriginThe company is founded in Redmond, Washington, to build AI data centers in low Earth orbit.
Historical Context
3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.
1994-2002
Teledesic's 'Internet in the sky' (1990s)
Backed by Bill Gates and Craig McCaw, Teledesic planned a constellation of hundreds of satellites to beam broadband worldwide. It raised huge sums and generated enormous hype. It never launched an operational network.
Then
The company kept shrinking its satellite count as costs and technical hurdles mounted.
Now
Teledesic suspended construction in 2002 and folded without flying its constellation.
Why this matters now
It shows how a capital-rich, ambitious constellation can collapse under launch and cost realities before reaching orbit, the same pressures Starcloud names as its biggest risk.
1998-2001
Iridium's bankruptcy and revival (1999-2001)
Iridium launched a 66-satellite phone network at a cost of roughly $5 billion. Subscribers never materialized at the scale needed. It filed for bankruptcy in 1999, months after service began.
Then
Investors lost billions, and the satellites nearly de-orbited.
Now
New owners bought the network for about $25 million in 2001 and ran it profitably for years.
Why this matters now
Iridium is a reminder that working orbital hardware can still misjudge demand and pricing, and that a bold constellation can be both a technical success and a financial failure.
2019-present
SpaceX Starlink proves the constellation model (2019-present)
SpaceX began launching Starlink in 2019 and now flies thousands of satellites, using its own cheap, reusable rockets to cut launch costs. It reached millions of subscribers.
Then
Starlink showed large low-orbit constellations could be built and operated at scale.
Now
It reset expectations for what a single company can put in orbit, and made rivals dependent on SpaceX for rides.
Why this matters now
Starlink is both the proof that big constellations can work and the reason launch capacity is scarce, since the same rockets Starcloud needs are booked solid.