China takes the competition to space: First supercomputer is being built

According to the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, satellite launches have begun for a massive space computer network. Space is an increasingly important frontier in the rivalry between China and the United States. Putting a computer network in space would leave it dependent on connections to Earth for data processing. China’s planned satellite constellation would allow the network to operate independently of such restrictions. It would eliminate the need for costly cooling systems required for Earth-based computing and would relieve the risks of being tethered to the ground. The satellites would also provide potential military advantages in the event of conflict.

THE RACE BETWEEN CHINA AND THE US HAS INTENSIFIED The artificial intelligence capacity of the new network reveals that the artificial intelligence race between China and the US has intensified. It was reported that 12 satellites were launched with the Long March 2D rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northern China on May 14. According to the news in the Chinese ST newspaper, the official newspaper of the Ministry of Science and Technology, it is planned to have 2,800 satellites that will be connected to each other with lasers over a single computer network. According to the company, the number of satellites is still small compared to the Starlink communication network of Elon Musk's SpaceX. SpaceX is the largest satellite constellation in the world and had more than 6,750 satellites in orbit by the end of February. Launches are ongoing and may eventually reach more than 30,000 satellites.