Amazon Teams Up with SpaceX for the Launch of 24 More Kuiper Satellites
Amazon has formed an unexpected alliance with its competitor, SpaceX, to launch 24 Project Kuiper satellites. The event took place early Wednesday morning, marking a significant milestone in the e-commerce giant’s ambitious internet constellation project.
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket took off from Cape Canaveral at 2:30 a.m. EDT, increasing Amazon’s total satellite count to 78 in orbit. This collaboration presents an ironic twist, as Amazon’s Kuiper project is in direct competition with SpaceX’s Starlink. The latter currently holds the majority share of the satellite internet market with approximately 8,000 satellites.
Amazon CEO Dave Limp celebrated the launch on LinkedIn, expressing his gratitude to SpaceX for “the ride to space.”
Amazon is up against a stringent Federal Communications Commission deadline, which mandates 1,618 satellites in orbit by July 2026. This figure represents roughly half of its planned 3,236-satellite constellation. The company has invested over $10 billion in Project Kuiper and has secured up to 83 launches from various providers. This includes three missions with SpaceX, following investor pressure to use the most reliable rocket available.
Source: CNBC