Kenyan American engineer Rama Afullo became convinced of the potential of orbital data centers after working in Google's cloud unit and then on SpaceX's Starlink network.
After his onboard proposals for orbital computing were declined at both Google and SpaceX, he left SpaceX and co-founded a new company called Satlyt .
Based in Sunnyvale and Nairobi, Satlyt aims to build software that lets many satellites share the workload of large computing jobs in space.
Afullo exclusively told TechCrunch that the company has closed an $8 million seed round.
Satlyt's software launches Thursday aboard a SpaceX rocket alongside the first prototype of Google's space data center effort, Project Suncatcher .
In Afullo's telling, SpaceX later fully embraced the orbital data center idea, which suggests the timing is favorable.
According to a Reuters space-economy analysis, the low-orbit computing market is projected to grow more than 30 percent per year into the 2030s.
Crunchbase records show that seed funding for space-based computing infrastructure doubled in 2025 compared with the previous year.
AI commentary
"This move could shift the balance of its sector."
AI assessment
The strongest counter-view: turning the announced promises into real products takes time.
Still, funding and customer indicators support early adoption.
Figures based on company presentations await independent verification.
Practical takeaway: observers should keep monitoring developments closely.
Sources
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satlyt · uydu · ai · spacex · google