Starfish Space Uses Google Cloud & GKE to Accelerate Satellite Servicing

Startup leverages cloud infrastructure to run millions of simulations for autonomous satellite docking software

Published on Feb. 6, 2026

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Starfish Space, a startup pioneering a software-first approach to satellite servicing, has selected Google Cloud as its strategic provider for cloud infrastructure. By leveraging the scalability of Google Compute Engine and Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE), Starfish Space is able to execute millions of complex simulations to train its autonomous software for docking with satellites in orbit, accelerating the development of its Otter satellite servicing vehicle.

Why it matters

Historically, satellite servicing has been the domain of massive government programs involving heavy, hardware-intensive vehicles, making it difficult and expensive to scale. Starfish Space's software-first approach, enabled by cloud infrastructure, is changing this paradigm and opening up new possibilities for extending satellite lifetimes and providing end-of-life disposal services.

The details

Starfish Space selected Google Cloud to support the development of autonomous software capable of satellite docking. Leveraging the scalability of Google Compute Engine and Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE), Starfish Space is able to execute millions of complex Monte Carlo simulations to train its software in a virtual orbital environment, allowing the company to iterate rapidly and test against countless edge cases without the capital expenditure of on-premise hardware.

  • Starfish Space has secured Otter mission contracts with NASA, the U.S. Space Force, SES, and the Space Development Agency.
  • The company is preparing to launch the first full Otter satellites this year to begin providing commercial services.

The players

Starfish Space

A startup pioneering a software-first approach to satellite servicing, with the goal of extending satellite lifetimes and providing end-of-life disposal services.

Google Cloud

The strategic cloud infrastructure provider for Starfish Space, enabling the company to run millions of complex simulations to train its autonomous satellite docking software.

Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE)

The managed Kubernetes service used by Starfish Space to spin up and scale down massive compute resources for its demanding simulation workloads.

Austin Link

The co-founder of Starfish Space.

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What they’re saying

“Starfish Space has secured Otter mission contracts with NASA, the U.S. Space Force, SES, and the Space Development Agency. Following the launch of their Otter Pup demonstration satellites, the company is preparing to launch the first full Otter satellites this year to begin providing commercial services.”

— Austin Link, Co-Founder, Starfish Space (google.com)

What’s next

Starfish Space is preparing to launch the first full Otter satellites this year to begin providing commercial satellite servicing services.

The takeaway

Starfish Space's software-first approach to satellite servicing, enabled by scalable cloud infrastructure from Google Cloud, is transforming a historically hardware-intensive industry and opening up new possibilities for extending satellite lifetimes and providing end-of-life disposal services.