Post Content Pathfinder is expected to reach orbit by Q4 2026. (Image: Sarvam)
As space-based computing gains steam, India could see its first homegrown large language model (LLM) trained in orbit as early as this year.
Space-tech startup Pixxel on Monday, May 4, announced a partnership with LLM provider Sarvam AI to develop and build India’s first orbital data centre satellite called The Pathfinder. Expected to reach orbit by the end of 2026, the 200-kg satellite will house GPUs (graphics processing units) that will be used to carry out training and inference of Sarvam’s AI model.
Unlike conventional satellite computing, which relies on low-power edge processors optimised for survival rather than performance, the Pathfinder satellite will house the same generation of hardware as on-ground data centres used to power frontier AI models, as per the Bengaluru-based startup.
The announcement comes as a growing number of tech giants such as Google and Elon Musk-owned SpaceX as well as several startups look to space as a way of bypassing Earth’s power constraints.
Global data centre capacity is estimated to reach 200 GW by 2030, according to American real estate services company JLL. Meanwhile, a new report from investment bank Morgan Stanley estimates India’s data centre capacity to grow six‑fold from 1.8 GW to about 10.5 GW by 2031.
However, the massive energy demand for terrestrial data centres has sparked public resistance and is pushing tech companies to explore out-of-the-box solutions such as orbital data centres. Elon Musk-owned SpaceX said it aims to launch up to 1 million data-centre satellites into orbit. Recently, Meta announced partnerships with energy startups Overview Energy and Noon Energy to tap into solar energy beamed directly to the Earth from space in order to power the social media giant’s on-ground data centres.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is also exploring next-gen satellites with on-board data processing and data storage, according to the Centre’s response in Parliament on December 11.
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However, the concept of orbital data centres has been dismissed by many experts as outlandish and commercially unviable because rocket launch costs would need to fall from today’s low thousands of dollars per kilogram to the low hundreds of dollars per kilogram. In addition, power is not the only cost involved in operating a data centre, and concerns have also been raised about servicing or replacing space-based GPUs that fail during AI model training.
As part of the partnership, Pixxel said it will design, build, launch, and operate the Pathfinder satellite. The satellite will be developed at Gigapixxel, the company’s upcoming facility that will be designed to scale satellite production to up to 100 units. Pixxel did not disclose additional technical details about Pathfinder.
Sarvam, on the other hand, will handle the training and inference of its language models directly in orbit. The models and inference platform will process data with no dependence on foreign cloud or ground infrastructure, as per the press release.
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The mission will further validate real-time AI inference and data processing in the harsh space environment. It is expected to test performance, power management, thermal constraints, and real-time data workflows under operational conditions while establishing the technical and commercial groundwork for future orbital data centre systems.
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“Orbital data centres open up a new frontier, where compute can be powered by abundant solar energy, operate closer to space-based data, and move beyond some of the limits faced on Earth. For Pixxel to build the next generation of space infrastructure, we have to help shape this shift, not watch it happen from the sidelines,” Pixxel CEO Awais Ahmed said in a statement.
“Sarvam has been building India’s full-stack AI platform from the ground up, and partnering with Pixxel allows us to extend that sovereign stack into space. Having India-built models running in orbit aboard an India-built satellite is exactly the kind of foundational capability that the country needs to control its own intelligence infrastructure,” Sarvam CEO Pratyush Kumar said.
Also Read | Why Meta is betting on space-based solar energy projects to power its AI future
Besides housing chips to train AI models, Pathfinder will also carry a hyperspectral imaging camera capable of capturing high-fidelity hyperspectral data. This data will be analysed directly in orbit using foundation models trained in space.
“Instead of sending large volumes of raw imagery back to Earth for processing, the system can identify patterns, detect changes, and generate insights in real time. This significantly reduces the delay between data capture and decision-making, enabling faster responses across environmental monitoring, resource management, and critical infrastructure tracking,” Pixxel said.
