Blue Origin aims to create orbital data centers for AI, like SpaceX, and has applied to launch 51,600 satellites

Blue Origin files FCC application for orbital data center “Sunrise”

Blue Origin (owner of Jeff Bezos) has submitted a request to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to approve its Sunrise project—a network of orbital data centers comprising up to 51,600 satellites. The satellites will be positioned at altitudes ranging from 500 to 1,800 km above Earth.

What they plan
* Allocate computing power in space—to increase overall industry capacity, add “clean” energy sources, and preserve ground infrastructure for tasks that cannot be performed from orbit.
* Data transmission to Earth will occur via laser inter‑satellite links (optical inter‑satellite links).
* Satellites are expected to connect to the TeraWave system, which Blue Origin is developing as a competitor to Starlink, though the FCC has not yet approved it.

The application states only that the spacecraft will use at least three types of antennas. No details on satellite design have been provided.

How this compares with SpaceX
* SpaceX has already applied for up to 1 million satellites and opened a public comment period.
* The number of Sunrise satellites (51,600) is significantly higher than the current active count (~15,000), but still falls short of SpaceX’s scale.

Industry leaders’ opinions
* Jeff Bezos said in October that in the coming decades space data centers could surpass terrestrial ones in cost and use solar energy directly.
* Elon Musk supports orbital centers and emphasizes the environmental benefits of moving computing to space.

Blue Origin’s arguments
The company claims that competition among multiple players will accelerate technological progress, improve resource efficiency, and lead to more sustainable industry solutions.

In addition to Sunrise, Starcloud (a startup) has also applied to the FCC for a cluster of 88,000 satellites for its own data centers. Together these initiatives could significantly increase the number of spacecraft in low Earth orbit.

Public reaction
* Astronomers and environmentalists express concerns about light pollution, space object safety, and potential impacts on Earth’s atmosphere.
* Blue Origin and SpaceX plan to retire old satellites and burn them in the atmosphere, but Blue Origin criticizes the massive SpaceX project as “substantially complicating coexistence of clusters” and highlights the lack of precedent for such a large network.

Interaction with Amazon
* Amazon asked the FCC to reject SpaceX’s application, claiming it is too speculative and could lead to orbital monopolization.
* FCC Chair Brendan Carr responded by urging companies to focus on their own satellite‑internet efforts.
* In response, SpaceX accused Amazon and Blue Origin of “naivety” due to a lack of practical experience.

Thus, Blue Origin seeks to launch a competitive orbital data center but faces serious challenges from regulators, competitors, and the public. The question of who will become the leader in the new space‑infrastructure industry for AI computing remains open.