6 days ago
SpaceX is about to give Starlink's main rival a ride to orbit
SpaceX has been enjoying growing uptake of its internet-from-space Starlink service, but in a weird twist, the company is about to lend a hand to its main rival in the sector.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is about to launch 24 satellites for Amazon's Project Kuiper program, which, like Starlink, will offer internet connectivity to individuals and businesses globally.
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The mission is aiming to lift off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 1:57 a.m. ET on Wednesday. A live webcast will begin about 15 minutes before launch, which you can watch on X @SpaceX.
Amazon's Project Kuiper is still in its early days, having so far deployed only 54 internet satellites in two missions, the first of which took place in April. SpaceX's Starlink, meanwhile, is much further down the road, with more than 7,000 satellites now serving more than 5 million customers globally following its first deployment in 2019.
Amazon used a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket for its first two Project Kuiper satellite launches. But the regulator has insisted that it must have half of its planned 3,200 satellites deployed by the end of July 2026, with the rest facing a July 2029 deadline for deployment. Failure to meet the initial milestone could risk key license permissions, though it's thought that Amazon would probably be granted additional time if needed.
The tight deadline has prompted Amazon to tap the services of multiple launch providers, with not only ULA and SpaceX but also Arianespace, and Blue Origin — the company started by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos — likely to send Project Kuiper satellites to orbit over the next 12 months and beyond.
The unusual collaboration means that SpaceX is actually helping to accelerate a direct competitor's progress, a move that intensifies the high-stakes race for dominance in the orbital internet sector.
