Starcloud Raises $250 Million to Build Orbital AI Data Centers

Starcloud raised $250 million in a funding extension led by Manhattan West Ventures, valuing the orbital AI data center startup at $2.3 billion. The investment round included participation from Nvidia and Cisco.

The company will use the capital to expand its 100,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Woodinville, Washington, and advance the development of its Starcloud-3 spacecraft. Starcloud is also collaborating with Nvidia to create the Vera Rubin Space-1, a GPU specifically designed for space environments. The company plans to launch two Starcloud-2 compute satellites in 2027 to serve customers, including U.S. government agencies.

CEO Philip Johnston is prioritizing the procurement of launch capacity due to a tightening market. Johnston noted that the Falcon 9 program is scheduled to end in 2028 as SpaceX transitions to the Starship system, creating a constraint on available launches. Starcloud aims to secure contracts for Starship to avoid potential capacity shortages by 2029.