The first two computing satellites of the Pazhou Space Intelligent Computing Constellation (琶洲太空智算星组), developed with support from Guangzhou's Haizhu District, were launched at 7:40 p.m. on October 14 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. Both satellites entered their preset orbits, marking a successful launch mission.
Space-based computing offers an alternative to ground facilities
Computing power is essential to AI development. Unlike ground-based computing centers, space-based infrastructure is less constrained by land availability and terrestrial environmental conditions. This has spurred the development of a new class of satellites equipped with computing capabilities.
Pazhou Algorithm Competition helps tackle in-orbit data processing challenges
China currently operates a fleet of more than 640 civil and commercial remote sensing satellites, the world's second-largest, generating petabytes of raw observation data daily. Yet satellite-to-ground bandwidth constraints mean that less than 5 percent of the data is transmitted to Earth, leaving the vast majority unprocessed in orbit. Addressing this bottleneck in in-orbit data processing is crucial to the development of space computing.
To address this challenge, Haizhu District introduced a dedicated in-orbit computing track at the fourth Pazhou Algorithm Competition. Through the competition, the GalaxyTuring team deployed its self-developed multimodal large model on an in-orbit computing satellite and successfully completed a commercial mission validation, becoming the first in the industry to deploy such a model on a space computing satellite and complete a commercial mission.
On September 22, 2026, GalaxyTuring unveiled its Space-based World Model (天基世界模型) alongside the Pazhou Space Intelligent Computing Constellation at the second Guangdong AI Application Matchmaking Conference (第二届广东省人工智能应用对接大会).
24 satellites planned within three years
The constellation is planned to comprise 24 computing satellites, with the goal of enabling stable, round-the-clock in-orbit operations and moving the Space-based World Model from short-term orbital testing to sustained service delivery.
The project marks three industry firsts: regular operation of space-based computing payloads, high-bandwidth laser communications between satellites and between satellites and ground stations, and distributed computing for large AI models across multiple satellites with services delivered to users on Earth.
Wang Kai, the founder and CEO of GalaxyTuring, said that integrating the Space-based World Model with the Pazhou Space Intelligent Computing Constellation could open up new possibilities in emergency management, natural resource monitoring, maritime shipping, intelligent transportation and agricultural monitoring. It could also provide Guangdong with shared space-based computing infrastructure.
Haizhu District plans to bring more than 24 satellites into commercial operation within three years, build China's largest space computing cluster by computing capacity, and foster a space computing industrial chain worth 10 billion yuan.
Author | He Fengyu
Photos | Publicity Department of Haizhu District, Guangzhou
