Microsoft on Tuesday announced a collaboration with SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service in a bid to improve internet connectivity around the world. Under the partnership, Microsoft is integrating Starlink’s low-Earth orbit satellite technology with on-the-ground initiatives, working alongside local organizations and partners.
“Through our collaboration with Starlink, Microsoft is combining low-Earth orbit satellite connectivity with community-based deployment models and local ecosystem partnerships,” Microsoft’s chief sustainability officer, Melanie Nakagawa, wrote in a blog post. She added that Microsoft is working to connect 450 community hubs in the country in an alliance with Starlink and an internet service provider in Kenya.
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This initiative further builds on Microsoft’s larger commitment, established in 2022, to reach more than 250 million people globally with internet connections by the close of 2025. To date, the company reports that it has extended coverage to over 299 million individuals.
Notably, this partnership comes at a time when Elon Musk, the founder and CEO of SpaceX has been critical of Microsoft. Earlier this month, Musk said on X that the company “has a responsibility to investigate” board member Reid Hoffman’s association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Hoffman said that he deeply regretted that he knew Epstein through a fundraising relationship with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Musk is also pursuing litigation against Microsoft partner OpenAI, which he helped establish in 2015 with several partners, including Hoffman. Musk has accused OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman of straying from their founding principles and has demanded significant financial restitution, alleging wrongful profits gained through his early involvement.
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The partnership also highlights the increased demand for Starlink’s services. Its satellite business is already under contract with the U.S. Department of Defense and NASA.
SpaceX recently entered into a merger with xAI, an AI company also owned by Musk. The consolidation brought together SpaceX’s core space exploration and Starlink satellite internet operations with xAI’s advanced AI research and products, including the Grok chatbot and large-language models, under one corporate umbrella. This merger came ahead of a planned IPO planned for this year, predicted to be one of the biggest IPOs in history. Market watchers suggest that an IPO of this scale would not only raise unprecedented capital but also redefine the valuation benchmarks for tech and aerospace firms, setting a new standard for investor expectations.
Last year, Microsoft said its Foundry cloud software for building AI-infused applications added support for Grok models.