OpenAI's Sam Altman Criticises Elon Musk's Space Data Centre Vision

Sam Altman, the Chief Executive Officer of OpenAI, has dismissed the concept of orbital data centres as impractical, in light of recent statements by SpaceX's Chief Executive Officer, Elon Musk. The discussion about utilising space for data processing is also on the radar of Google, with plans expected to materialise in the coming years.

During the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi, Altman expressed his thoughts on the feasibility of launching data centres into orbit. "Putting data centres in space with the current landscape is ridiculous," he stated in an interview with the Indian Express. He elaborated that the current economic and technical challenges posed by launch costs and the difficulty of addressing issues with components, such as graphic processing units (GPUs), make such initiatives unrealistic within the decade.

Nevertheless, Altman acknowledged a future potential for orbital data centres, noting, "We're not there yet."

These remarks come as Musk has been advocating for the establishment of data centres in space. At the World Economic Forum in Davos this January, Musk claimed, "The lowest-cost place to put AI will be in space, and that will be true within two years, maybe three at the latest." His ambitions regarding this initiative were highlighted at an all-hands meeting of xAI in December, where he foresees the involvement of Tesla's Optimus robot in managing orbital data centres.

Recently, Musk indicated that the integration of xAI with SpaceX could expedite the project of placing data centres in orbit. SpaceX aims to establish a network comprising one million satellites that would function as orbital data centres, and the company has reportedly begun recruiting engineers to advance this project.

Google is also exploring the concept of space-based data centres. CEO Sundar Pichai described the initiative as a "moonshot" during a December interview with Fox News. He explained that Google's ambition is to develop a system to harness solar energy, which vastly exceeds Earth’s current energy production capabilities.

Pichai added that Google is preparing to take its first steps towards this goal by 2027, with plans to deploy small racks of machinery on satellites as preliminary tests. "There’s no doubt to me that a decade or so away we’ll be viewing it as a more normal way to build data centres," he said.

Internally, Google has been working on this initiative, referred to as Project Suncatcher, highlighting the company’s long-term commitment to the exploration of orbital data centres as a solution to the growing energy demands associated with artificial intelligence development. By utilising the energy from the sun in space, these facilities aim to mitigate the environmental impact of traditional data centres on Earth.

As developments continue, both OpenAI and Google are at the forefront of discussions regarding the future of data centres, each with distinct visions for advancements in technology and sustainability.