Shanghai Launches Space Computing Plan with Alibaba Cloud and GCL Optoelectronic

Shanghai has launched the Pearl Constellation plan for space computing.

At the Pujiang Innovation Forum in Shanghai, industry officials said the initiative aims to build a gigawatt-level space-based computing constellation with a localized technology chain and an independent, controllable industrial ecosystem.

The project has 27 industry chain partners, including research organizations, energy companies, and chip designers, led by Shanghai Dongfang Tian Suan Technology.

The partners involved in this initiative include the Innovation Academy for Microsatellite of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Alibaba Cloud, iFlytek, GCL System Integration, JinkoSolar, GCL Optoelectronic, Biren Technology, and Iluvatar CoreX.

The focus of their collaborative innovation is on key areas such as computing chips, space energy, inter-satellite communication, satellite platforms, computing payloads, and software services.

They will target space-borne intelligent computing payloads, in-orbit intelligent services, inter-satellite laser networking, space-based computing cloud platforms, new space energy sources, and anti-radiation computing.

Shanghai's five-year aerospace development plan, released at the forum, outlines the city's goal to integrate the entire industrial chain of rocket manufacturing, satellite production, and applications, aiming to build a globally covered Shanghai Constellation within the next five years.

Nationwide, China has successfully launched more than 340 multi-domain satellites to date, with the single-rocket launch capacity increasing from 18 in July to 20, as the commercial aerospace industry enters a period of accelerated growth.