Starcloud recently made history by launching a satellite with an NVIDIA H100 into orbit — the first time a GPU that powerful has ever operated in space. It's the first step toward building AI data centers in orbit, powered by continuous sunlight and cooled by radiating heat into deep space. Their approach could one day rival the world's biggest data centers while using less energy, zero fresh water, and far lower emissions. In this episode of Hard Tech, YC's Aaron Epstein visits Starcloud's HQ, where co-founders Philip Johnston, Ezra Feilden, and Adi Oltean explain how they built a working prototype in just 15 months — and why big tech is racing to space for AI compute. Learn more about Starcloud: https://www.starcloud.com Read their white paper: https://starcloudinc.github.io/wp.pdf Apply to Y Combinator: https://www.ycombinator.com/apply Work at a startup: https://www.ycombinator.com/jobs Chapters: 00:00 – A New Industry: Data Centers In Space 00:52 – Making History 01:29 – Their Mission 02:16 – Building A Demo Satellite 02:50 – Why Compute Belongs in Space 03:51 – Energy Demands On Earth 04:31 – Responding to Skeptics 06:03 – Founder Origin Story 06:43 – Pivot From Space Based Solar To Orbital Data Centers 07:22 – YC And The Power Of Taking Risks 07:22 – Tour Of StarCloud HQ 10:39 – The StarCloud-1 Launch 11:40 – Next Launch in 2026