Amazon is urging the FCC to deny SpaceX’s orbital data center plan, claiming that it is a lofty ambition rather than a real plan.
The 17-page filing by Amazon Leo is scathing in its review of SpaceX’s plan. It argues that SpaceX does not provide details on its grandiose one-million-satellite constellation and claims SpaceX would not be able to deliver on it in any timely manner.
Per the SpaceX filing, the company plans to harness solar power to process AI workloads in space and will launch 1 million satellites to make it happen. However, per Amazon, SpaceX does not include any details around satellite design or the radio frequency they would use.
In its filing, Amazon is blunt and to the point. They note:
At best, the Application appears to be an exercise in publicity and messaging—and at worst, an attempt to stake a priority claim over a vast swath of orbital resources with no genuine intent to deploy.
As well, they are questioning why the FCC is even considering the proposal, as the Commission has a history of refusing to process proposals that are “speculative, conceptual or otherwise incomplete filings”.
Amazon is not the only company that is urging the FCC to deny the proposal. The American Astronomical Society and Viasat both filed their own filings on Friday, ahead of the close of filings on March 6 denouncing the SpaceX’s filing and calling for a denial.
