Nvidia joins Starcloud's $250 million orbital data center funding round
This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.
Starcloud raised $250 million in a Series A extension led by Manhattan West, with Nvidia among investors, doubling its valuation to $2.3 billion. The Redmond-based startup has now raised $450 million since 2024 to build orbital data centers. The funding will support manufacturing, launch procurement, and engineering with Nvidia's Space-1 Vera Rubin Module.
Key Facts
- Starcloud raised $250 million in a Series A extension led by Manhattan West, doubling its valuation to $2.3 billion.
- Nvidia participated in the round and will provide its Space-1 Vera Rubin Module, which offers up to 25 times more AI compute than the H100.
- Starcloud-1, launched by SpaceX in November, was the first satellite to run Nvidia's H100 GPU in low Earth orbit.
- The first 450-kilogram Starcloud-2 satellite is slated to launch in January on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare.
- Nvidia also announced a partnership with Cloverleaf Infrastructure, with an investment reported at several hundred million dollars.
Funding and Valuation
Starcloud announced the $250 million Series A extension on Aug. 21, led by investment firm Manhattan West. The round doubled the company's valuation to $2.3 billion and brought total capital raised since its 2024 founding to $450 million. Nvidia joined the round alongside other investors, though the specific amount of its investment was not disclosed. The additional capital will fund manufacturing capacity, rocket launch procurement, and engineering work with Nvidia.
Orbital Data Center Plans
Starcloud's first satellite, the 60-kilogram Starcloud-1 launched by SpaceX in November, was the first to run Nvidia's H100 GPU in low Earth orbit. The company used Starcloud-1 to train an AI model and run a version of Google's Gemini in space. Nvidia's Space-1 Vera Rubin Module, unveiled in March, is designed to deliver up to 25 times more AI compute than the H100. Starcloud aims to use the module on future spacecraft to run cloud workloads for customers including Crusoe, an AI infrastructure provider. The first 450-kilogram Starcloud-2 satellite is slated to launch in January on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare, generating about eight kilowatts of power.
Nvidia's Broader AI Infrastructure Push
Nvidia also announced a partnership with Cloverleaf Infrastructure, a data center developer founded in 2024 that raised $300 million. The Wall Street Journal reported Nvidia's investment in Cloverleaf will likely total several hundred million dollars, while Reuters said the chipmaker now owns a minority stake. Earlier in the week, Nvidia announced a $1.5 billion investment in SB Energy, an OpenAI-linked data center project in Ohio. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said during an Aug. 4 earnings call that the company would build 'exclusively on Nvidia' for AI computing capacity. A regulatory filing showed Nvidia held nearly 123 million Class A SpaceX shares worth about $21 billion as of June 30.
2 sources
Nvidia joins Starcloud's $250 million orbital data center funding round
