Google has put four of its AI chips into orbit. The prototype satellite for Project Suncatcher launched on October 1 aboard SpaceX’s Transporter-18 rideshare mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Planet Labs, which built the satellite with Google, said it has made contact with the spacecraft. Google confirmed the satellite is operating as expected. The refrigerator-sized prototype carries four Google Trillium Tensor Processing Units, or TPUs. Over the coming weeks, Google will collect data on how the chips handle launch stress, radiation and extreme temperatures in orbit. The goal is to test whether AI hardware can survive in space. It is not a working data centre. Google says a solar panel in the right orbit can be up to eight times more productive than on Earth. A bigger test is planned for 2027, when Google aims to link two satellites with laser connections. The mission is a first step in a long-term research effort.