SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son has a blunt message for Elon Musk: space data centers aren't worth it. Speaking at SoftBank’s Japanese telecom unit’s annual shareholder meeting on June 23, Son shot down the idea of putting server racks in orbit, arguing the real AI battle will be decided by computing power on Earth.
Musk has pitched space data centers as a way to slash electricity costs. But Son countered that power expenses are a tiny slice of a data center's operating budget — dwarfed by hardware costs like chips. Ship servers to space to save on electricity, and you’re left with exorbitant rocket launch fees, maintenance headaches, and latency issues.
Son stressed that the next few years are far more critical than the next decade in the AI arms race. SoftBank is doubling down on building terrestrial data centers, following a 'first-mover advantage' strategy. The company’s Japanese telecom arm is also plotting an entry into the US market for AI-focused cloud computing — known as Neocloud.