Amazon launches 27 satellites for the Kuiper Network, a competitor to Starlink's space-based internet service
Amazon has taken a major step in its ambitious Project Kuiper with the successful launch of the first of 27 broadband internet satellites, which will provide high-speed internet from space.
The launch took place on Monday at 7:01 p.m. (local time) from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket.
The mission, dubbed KA-01 (Kuiper Atlas 1), represents the first of 46 planned operations between Amazon and UNITLA, aiming to deploy a significant portion of the more than 3,200 satellites that will make up the Kuiper constellation. These devices will operate in low Earth orbit, at an altitude of less than 2,000 kilometers, allowing for faster communications with lower latency.
The launch was originally scheduled for April 9 but was postponed due to adverse weather conditions. With the success of this first mission, Amazon strengthens its commitment to the US Federal Communications Commission, which requires at least half of its satellites to be in orbit by July 2026.
Through Project Kuiper, Amazon seeks to position itself as a direct competitor to Starlink, Elon Musk's satellite network that already has more than 7,000 satellites in operation, as well as other initiatives such as OneWeb and China's SpaceX.
The project's investment is estimated at $10 billion and relies on multiple partners to launch it, including Blue Origin, the aerospace company owned by Jeff Bezos, and SpaceX, a direct competitor in the satellite internet sector.