SpaceX CEO Elon Musk went on national radio to pitch a timeline for creating data centers in Earth orbit – even as challenges to the idea are mounting.
In a conversation with Gov.
Greg Abbott, who was filling in as guest host of “The Sean Hannity Show,” Musk touted his belief that space-based artificial intelligence is the future.
“The way to expand compute without using up all the land on Earth is to do so in space,” said Musk, who called in to the show from Gigafactory Texas.
“Then, you can do it without using space for power and water on Earth; you can just do it in space.”
Asked by Abbott when his data centers in space will be reality, Musk – known for setting ambitious deadlines that aren’t met – said major progress could be seen in 2027 and 2028.
“We’ll probably be launching our first AI satellites next year and then we’ll be able to do that, I think, at large scale in about two years,” he said.
SpaceX took a step toward that goal in February, when it filed a request with the Federal Communications Commission for approval to launch up to 1 million solar-powered satellites that would operate as an orbital AI network.
Others are casting doubt on space data centers, a concept also being proposed by companies including Blue Origin and Google.
As Musk spoke Wednesday with Abbott, a coalition of environmental and scientific organizations petitioned the FCC for a comprehensive review of the environmental risks, impacts, and costs of satellite-based data centers.
The groups are asking the FCC to pause granting any licenses for so-called orbital data centers until it conducts a programmatic environmental review.
“Drastically expanding satellites in space has a direct impact on people’s everyday lives as well as the future of our planet,” said Jan Hasselman, senior attorney at Earthjustice.
“Agencies that authorize companies looking to space as the next frontier still must operate within the law, and the law requires the FCC to consider all the risks and impacts of these proposals.
If we have to sue so that they comply, we will.”
Musk’s appearance on the conservative talk show came just weeks after SpaceX went public in a blockbuster initial public offering that temporarily made him the world’s first trillionaire and created millionaires among employees of the Texas-based company and others who had shares.
Discussing that with Abbott, Musk said he’s always thought employees of his companies should receive stock.
“As the company prospers, then the people at the company, the employees also prosper, so that’s just been my philosophy from day one,” he said.
Beyond Musk – with whom Abbott touts a close relationship in which they “text all the time” – the governor also used his “Hannity” show appearance to chat with Buc-ee’s CEO Arch “Beaver” Aplin and to deride U.S.
Senate candidate James Talarico and other DemocraTS.
Goals for the moon and Mars
Abbott boasted about Texas’ business environment and its key leaders. He referred to Musk as “the leading visionary of our time,” comparing him to Thomas Edison.
Abbott asked Musk about his most pressing plans in space.
And while Musk once focused much of his chatter on Mars, he’s now talking about the moon as an ideal place to establish a base in the coming years, or even as a vacation spot for short-term visitors.
“In 10 years, hopefully, we’ve enabled thousands if not tens of thousands of people to go to the moon.
It’s going to seem like a pretty outrageous number, given that there’s only about a dozen or so people that have been to the moon so far,” Musk said.
“But our Starship system is designed to carry ultimately tens of thousands of tons to the moon to create, effectively, a city on the moon and ultimately a city on Mars as well.”
He spoke about challenges his long-held Mars vision, including the fact that a launch window for the planet only opens every 26 monThS. Still, he said he envisions sending the first people to Mars in about five years, adding that he hopes that thousands will be sent to Mars over a 10- to 12-year timeframe.
Other Texas companies are working on Mars missions.
Among them, Austin-based Firefly Aerospace this week announced a $13 million subcontract from NASA to manufacture the aeroshell for NASA’s SkyFall mission to Mars, which is expected to launch in late 2028.
It and other companies — including SpaceX — have major contracts for missions to return to the moon, where it will establish a base for Mars missions.
Musk ended his discussion with Abbott by thanking him for his support.
“It’s a great state to do business in,” Musk said of Texas.
“It’s super supportive, and I think really emblematic of American values.
I love being here and love being a Texan.”
