Thinking On Paper Technology Podcast Data Centers IN SPACE | Philip Johnston, Starcloud CEO
Philip Johnston, co-founder of StarCloud, is building data centers in space. Forty-megawatt GPUS that unfold in orbit, bleed heat into the vacuum, and link back to Earth with lasers that outpace fiber.
Thanks to Space-X, launch costs are decreasing rapidly, allowing small and agile technology startups like Starcloud to send their tech into lower earth orbit at a fraction of the cost it once did. Predictions put the future cost of launch as low as ten dollars a kilo. At such a price, space manufacturing can really 'take off'.
Philip joins Mark and Jeremy to Think on Paper about the hardware Starcloud is launching into space this year. There will be no water - space radiators cool the GPUs without water. They ask how StarCloud’s latency beats transatlantic cables on key routes and learn why orbital compute could slash the AI power bill
Real-time compute from orbit. Unlimited power. Permanent sunshine.
The cloud is moving up.
Please enjoy the show. And share with a curious friend.
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Chapters
(00:00) The impact of earth based compute
(03:09) Data centers in space
(08:36) Conquering Latency Challenges in Space
(10:32) Modular Space Infrastructure
(16:03) How much do space based data centers cost?
(19:46) Manufacturing Beyond Earth's Boundaries
(26:00) Reusability and space junk
(26:15) GPUs in Orbit
(28:52) Future Tech Rapid-Fire Questions
(29:55) 5 Billion Humanoids
(32:35) Addressing Space Skepticism
(33:41) Quantum Computing's Orbital Advantage
The Humanoid Difference
(37:20) Where Are All the Aliens? Exploring the Fermi Paradox
(38:35) Behind the Scenes
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