Overview
- SpaceX and Nvidia said Monday they have adapted Nvidia’s Vera Rubin NVL72 rack into a space-optimized design and are targeting a first orbital launch in the fourth quarter of 2027 with scale expected in 2028.
- Nvidia confirmed full production of the Vera Rubin systems and disclosed ownership of 122.8 million SpaceX shares, making it both supplier and a shareholder in the program.
- Independent analysts and technical commentators warn the program faces unresolved engineering hurdles, especially how to reject heat in vacuum with very large radiators and how to manage cumulative radiation damage to GPUs and memory.
- Evercore ISI and other Wall Street models project that meaningful commercial revenue is unlikely before fiscal 2029 and model the first 1 gigawatt of orbital capacity coming online in 2029 with later scaling.
- SpaceX’s control of launch vehicles and its recent $60 billion all-stock acquisition of Cursor give it a competitive edge that could limit rivals’ access to launches and shape who benefits if the orbital AI market develops.