Elon Musk has a dream to build data centres in space. At various platforms, he has sounded confident about this vision. However, SoftBan founder Masayoshi Son has raised doubts about Musk’s proposal, saying he does not see the benefit of the idea at this stage. According to the Wall Street Journal, Son spoke during the company’s annual shareholder meeting and questioned how these data centres could realistically become useful.
Musk Sees Space As The Future Of AI Infrastructure
Musk has repeatedly argued that placing AI data centres in orbit could solve many of the energy problems faced by facilities on Earth. He believes solar power in space may provide abundant energy, making such centres more efficient in the long run.
SpaceX has reportedly included orbital data centres in its long-term plans and expected the first deployment could happen as early as 2028.
Notably, Son believes that moving data centres into space will significantly reduce costs. As per Son, electricity accounts for only a small share of running a data centre. He reportedly said around seven per cent of operating expenses come from power, while the majority of costs are linked to expensive AI chips, hardware and other infrastructure.
Because of this, Son questioned whether launching facilities into orbit would provide meaningful financial benefits, especially considering the additional engineering and maintenance challenges involved.
Instead of investing in projects that could take a decade or more to become practical, Son believes companies should focus on opportunities that can deliver results within the next few years.
He warned that the AI industry is changing rapidly, with new models, technologies and companies merging every week. In his view, the winner of the AI race will likely be decided long before space-based data centres become commercially viable.
Notably, Son said SoftBank wants to become an early leader in AI by concentrating on technologies that can be deployed sooner instead of betting on distant possibilities.
