SEATTLE, July 15 — Amazon Web Services, the cloud computing giant that generated $90 billion in revenue last year, is facing a new kind of competitor in space. Not another cloud provider, but SpaceX. The record shows AWS launched in 2006 and has grown to become the world’s largest cloud platform.
Its 2024 revenue of $90 billion places it far ahead of any rival in the traditional cloud market. But the competition is no longer just about data centers on Earth.
AWS began offering AWS Ground Station in 2019, a service designed to process satellite data. The company has also built partnerships with Iridium and other satellite operators. These moves positioned AWS to serve customers who need to pull data from orbit and analyze it in the cloud.
SpaceX, by contrast, does not operate a direct cloud service. The company’s strength lies elsewhere.
Starlink, its satellite internet constellation, provides low-latency connectivity that can be used to access cloud platforms. That capability allows users to bypass traditional internet service providers, potentially reshaping how remote and mobile operations connect to computing resources. Both companies are now targeting the same customer base: government agencies and large enterprises.
The timeline of their competing contracts tells the story.
Pentagon contracts mark the battlefield
In 2019, the U.S. Department of Defense awarded AWS a $10 billion contract known as the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure, or JEDI. That contract was later canceled. But AWS rebounded in 2022, securing a $9 billion Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability contract, known as JWCC.
SpaceX has its own military portfolio. The company holds contracts for Starshield, a military-grade satellite service.
The record shows both companies are now competing directly in edge computing and space-based data analytics. The competition is intensifying. AWS brings the scale of its existing cloud infrastructure and its established relationships with defense and intelligence customers.
SpaceX brings a satellite network that is already in orbit and a track record of rapid deployment. The Pentagon has made clear it wants multiple providers.
Both AWS and SpaceX are positioning to capture as much of that spending as possible.
What to watch next
The next phase of this competition will likely play out in edge computing — processing data closer to where it is collected, rather than sending it back to a central data center. SpaceX’s Starlink network offers the connectivity to make edge computing viable in remote locations. AWS offers the software and services to process that data.
Space-based data analytics is another front. AWS Ground Station already allows customers to bring satellite data directly into the AWS cloud.
SpaceX’s constellation generates enormous amounts of data from orbit. The record does not show which company holds the advantage. It shows only that both are investing heavily, that both have Pentagon contracts, and that the competition is accelerating.
For government and enterprise customers, that means more options — and more complexity — in how they build their digital infrastructure.
