Shanghai Unveils Space-Computing Hub Amid China-US Space Race

In the escalating competition between China and the US in space exploration, Shanghai has introduced a specialized space-computing center located in the Songjiang district. This initiative was revealed during a forum on Sunday, which gathered aerospace developers, AI experts, semiconductor manufacturers, cloud service providers, researchers, and investors to enhance in-orbit data processing, according to Shanghai Observer. Space computing enables satellites to process data while in orbit, minimizing the necessity to send raw data back to Earth and accelerating real-time intelligence. Future plans include solar-powered orbital data centers to alleviate the burden on terrestrial power grids. Songjiang is crucial to China's satellite supply chain, hosting SpaceSail, which has launched over 200 satellites and aims to establish a 15,000-satellite mega-constellation by 2030, along with other manufacturers like Gesi Aerospace and Xuntian Qianhe. The hub is poised to strengthen China's space computing and data processing capabilities, heightening the rivalry with the United States in space technology.