While European institutions continue to debate the future of computing in orbit, China is already building it. A new policy brief from the European Space Policy Institute (ESPI), Constellating compute: China’s domestic policy towards orbital data centre leadership, maps how China has moved from concept to implementation of orbital data centres (ODCs) within a single year, and what this means for European technology sovereignty.
What are ODCs?
ODCs, or space-based data centres, are facilities in orbit built around a computing payload, handling data processing and storage in space.
The case for them is growing. Northern Sky Research forecasts a 14x increase in global space data volume by 2030, equivalent to 500 exabytes, as Earth observation satellites, communications constellations and sensors generate ever more data. While Terrestrial data centres are expected to face increased constraints, companies are looking to space.
China’s four-pillar approach
China is one of the world’s key players in the development of new advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and other digital technologies. To continue its leadership and to satisfy the demands for large-scale compute, China has now become one of the biggest proponents and early-adopters of orbital data centres (ODCs).
China has pursued ODCs through four converging elements: top-down policy drafting and guidance, private and state-owned industry adaptation, municipal and provincial government incentivisation, and supporting non-state actors and groups. Central to this effort have been the state-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), who first formalised ODCs in a new strategy; the Beijing Municipal Government, and the Zhongguancun Science Park in Beijing; as well as a multitude of startups.
Timeline of China’s ODC activities, 2025-2026
What does it mean for Europe?
European actors have taken steps of their own, from the EU-funded ASCEND research project to ESA’s Φ-sat-2 mission with Open Cosmos. But as China’s momentum builds, the brief warns that the technological gap is widening. Without a coordinated response, Europe risks having to compute its own space data through third-party actors and losing access to orbital information altogether.
The brief sets out five recommendations for European stakeholders:
"Europe needs a sovereign response to ODCs or it will risk being beholden to the nations and companies that have put the appropriate architecture and standards in place. ESA and the EU should adopt institutional proactivity by signalling demand for space compute and for in-space data processing and offering associate contracts to the industry."
"While many European and American companies are looking forward for compute, Chinese companies have already started looking up. Over the past year, China's space ecosystem—ranging from municipal initiatives and start-ups to academic labs and well-established state-owned enterprises—has increasingly focused on the development of orbital data centres, as China makes strides in advanced technology and AI developments and as it seeks to navigate multiple computing constraints. This has important consequences for European space stakeholders, as European start-ups have also begun exploring this topic and as Europe debates its technological sovereignty."
