Starcloud raises $250 million for orbital data centers as launch options dry up
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Starcloud, a startup developing satellites for AI inference in orbit, has raised a $250 million extension to its Series A, bringing the round's total to $420 million and valuing the company at $2.3 billion. The funding, led by Manhattan West Ventures with participation from Nvidia, Cisco, and others, will support a larger manufacturing facility and the development of its Starcloud-3 spacecraft intended for SpaceX's Starship. CEO Philip Johnston is securing launch capacity as the market tightens, noting that Falcon 9 is scheduled to end in 2028 while alternatives like New Glenn and Vulcan are not yet flying regularly. The company plans to launch two Starcloud-2 satellites on rideshare missions in 2027 and may buy a dedicated Falcon 9 launch for additional spacecraft. Starcloud operates an Nvidia H100 GPU in orbit, the first to train a model in space, and is sharing data with Nvidia as the chipmaker develops its purpose-built Vera Rubin Space-1 chip. The company, which has 25 employees, is building production lines at a 100,000-square-foot facility in Woodinville, Washington.
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