'I wouldn't bet against Elon': Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins 'absolutely' wants to put data centers in space

Date:
Tue, 07 Apr 2026 17:35:00 +0000

Description:
Cisco execs are discussing what they need to send data centers to space, but we're a long way off that just yet.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Tech Radar Pro Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Become a Member in Seconds Unlock instant access to exclusive member features. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are
now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful Join the club Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards. Explore An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins says he's already exploring how to send data centers to space OpenAI's Sam Altman sees it as a "pipe dream," Elon Musk is optimistic Space-bound data centers would tackle a lot of the current issues Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins has revealed his company execs are already discussing plans to put data centers in space.

Robbins clearly backs the idea, noting that space could remove some of
Earth's key constraints like power, cooling and land availability. Abundant solar energy and fewer community objections are among the highlights (though
a different type of objection would likely occur). And Robbins isn't the only person with influence over data centers who believes this: "Sam Altman is one who says, 'I dont think they should be in their backyards'," he told Nilay Patel of The Verge . Article continues below You may like Sam Altman says plans for data centers in space are 'ridiculous' is this the start of a new war of words with Elon Musk? Nvidia wants to power the next generation of
data centers in space Musk says AI compute will move to space the timeline doesnt add up Cisco is actively exploring putting data centers in space Although Altman may be sceptical of locating data centers in space, SpaceX's Elon Musk is a major supporter. When asked whether he would believe Altman, who claims space-bound data centers are a "pipe dream," or Elon Musk, Robbins stated: "I wouldnt bet against Elon."

These campuses are generally seen as noisy, energy-intensive operations that are especially unpopular locally. Hyperscalers face increasing public opposition and concerns over environmental impacts, however soaring usage is
a conflicting trend that's requiring ongoing buildouts.

However, Cisco is still figuring out some of the technical challenges
relating to temperature, atmospheric conditions and launch logistics.

There's also a growing demand for data sovereignty, and it's unclear at best how space-located data centers would play into this with infrastructure
design shifting from global systems to localized deployments. Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get
all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting
your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

As for the next steps, there are clearly a lot of them. "Were in the early stages of just making sure the atmospheric issues, the temperatures, all of those things are taken into consideration," the CEO stated, noting "we dont even know everything we need to do yet."

"Absolutely," Robbins concluded when asked whether we should put data centers in space. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!

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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/pro/i-wouldnt-bet-against-elon-cisco-ceo-chuck-robbi ns-absolutely-wants-to-put-data-centers-in-space


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