Meta inks deal for solar power at night, beamed from space
Overview Energy's first contract with Meta is a small step toward a future of space-based solar power.
The race to secure electricity for AI models has reached new heights: Meta has signed an agreement with the startup Overview Energy that could see a thousand satellites beam infrared light to solar farms that power data centers at night.
In 2024, Meta’s data centers used more than 18,000 gigawatt-hours of electricity—roughly enough to power more than 1.7 million American homes for a year—and its need for compute power is only increasing. The company has committed to building 30 gigawatts of renewable power sources, with a focus on industrial-scale solar power plants.
Typically, data centers turning to solar power must either invest in battery storage or rely on other generation sources to operate at night.
Overview, a four-year-old, Ashburn, Virginia, outfit that emerged from stealth in December, has a different solution: The company is developing spacecraft that collect plentiful solar power in space. It then plans to convert that energy to near-infrared light and beam it at sufficiently large solar farms—on the order of hundreds of megawatts—which can convert that light to electricity.
By using a wide, infrared beam to power existing terrestrial solar infrastructure, Overview thinks it can sidestep the technological challenges and safety and regulatory issues that bedevil plans to transmit power to Earth through high-power lasers or microwave beams. CEO Marc Berte says you’ll be able to stare right into his satellite’s beam with no ill effects.
The technology would increase the return on investment from building solar farms and reduce reliance on fossil fuels — if it can be deployed at scale.
Overview says it has already demonstrated power transmission to the ground from an aircraft, and is planning to launch a satellite to low Earth orbit in January 2028 to perform its first power transmission from space.
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In today’s announcement, Meta said it signed the first capacity reservation agreement with Overview to receive up to 1 gigawatt of power from the company’s spacecraft, although it’s not clear if any money changed hands. Overview developed a new metric for this contract, megawatt photons, which is the amount of light required to generate a megawatt of electricity.
Berte expects to begin launching the satellites that would fulfill that commitment in 2030, with a goal of flying 1,000 spacecraft in geosynchronous orbit, a high orbit in which each satellite remains fixed above the same point on Earth. He expects each of the company’s spacecraft to provide power from space for more than 10 years.
Once in space, Berte says the fleet of spacecraft will be able to cover about a third of the planet, with an initial deployment that will reach from the West Coast of the United States across to Western Europe. As the Earth rotates below and customer solar farms enter evening and night, Overview’s spacecraft should boost their electrical generation with additional light from space.
Berte sees opportunity in combining both generation and transmission, with the flexibility to deliver power to solar farms wherever and whenever it is most valuable.
“There’s a big difference between being in any one energy market, and being in all of the energy markets,” Berte told TechCrunch.
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Key takeaways
- Meta and Overview Energy are exploring innovative solutions for solar energy transmission, which could impact the tech sector in Brazil.
- Overview's infrared light approach may facilitate the adoption of new energy technologies, circumventing regulatory challenges.
- Overview's success in its mission could inspire a more robust innovation and sustainability ecosystem in Brazil.
Editorial analysis
The agreement between Meta and Overview Energy represents a significant advancement in the search for sustainable energy solutions, especially at a time when the demand for energy for data centers is growing exponentially. For the Brazilian tech sector, this innovation could serve as a catalyst for the development of similar projects, encouraging local startups to explore renewable energy and space technologies. Brazil, with its vast territorial expanse and solar potential, could greatly benefit from initiatives that seek to integrate solar energy with new transmission technologies, like the proposal from Overview.
Moreover, Overview's approach of using infrared light to power existing solar farms could open doors for collaborations between tech companies and research institutions in Brazil. The ability to circumvent regulatory and safety challenges associated with energy transmission via lasers or microwaves is crucial, as it could facilitate the adoption of innovative technologies in a country where regulation often poses a barrier to innovation.
The next step will be to observe how Overview implements its technology on a large scale and whether it can meet the established deadlines for launching the satellite in 2028. The success of this initiative could not only transform how solar energy is utilized but also influence the strategies of Brazilian companies seeking more efficient and sustainable energy solutions. With increasing pressure for sustainable practices, the ability to generate clean and accessible energy will be a competitive advantage for companies in the future.
Finally, the collaboration between tech giants like Meta and innovative startups like Overview could inspire a more robust innovation ecosystem in Brazil. The integration of new energy technologies with artificial intelligence and other areas could result in solutions that not only meet the growing energy demand but also contribute to a more sustainable and resilient future.
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