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Firefly Aerospace Inc. (NASDAQ:FLY) shares are trading higher Wednesday after the company announced a new commercial payload agreement with Starcloud to demonstrate advanced AI computing capabilities in lunar orbit.

• Firefly stock is among today’s top performers. Why is FLY stock up today?

Firefly, Starcloud Partner on Lunar AI Computing Demo

Starcloud’s computing payload, designated SC-1L, will fly onboard Firefly’s Elytra orbital vehicle to validate the core capabilities of a future data center around the Moon that can support lunar surface and orbital infrastructure. Once integrated on Elytra, the SC-1L processor will ingest data from Firefly’s onboard Solux vision system, perform high-power AI computing on orbit, and rapidly transmit the processed data back to Earth. The demonstration builds directly on Starcloud’s recent AI computing demonstration in low Earth orbit, extending those capabilities into lunar orbit for the first time.

“We’re proud to collaborate with innovative customers like Starcloud and collectively take another step toward establishing the infrastructure that will power a permanent human and robotic presence at the Moon,” said Ray Allensworth, Vice President of Spacecraft at Firefly Aerospace.

“Space is the future of data centers, and the Moon is the next frontier for that vision,” said Ezra Feilden, Cofounder and CTO at Starcloud. “We successfully validated our ability to run and train AI models on enterprise grade GPUs in low Earth orbit, and now we’re taking this proven technology to lunar orbit.”

Firefly’s Third Lunar Mission

Starcloud is being onboarded to Firefly’s third lunar mission, targeted to launch no earlier than 2028. For that mission, Firefly’s Elytra orbiter will first serve as the transfer vehicle and communications relay for the company’s Blue Ghost lander, which will land on the Moon’s Gruithuisen Domes and operate several science and technology instruments as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative. Following the mission, Elytra will remain in lunar orbit for five years to support customer payload and imaging operations, including Starcloud’s demonstration. This will mark the second Elytra vehicle Firefly has deployed to lunar orbit, following Blue Ghost Mission 2, targeted for no earlier than 2027.

The announcement follows Firefly’s recent collaboration with Nvidia to process data on orbit for its Ocula lunar imaging service, using an Nvidia Jetson module and Firefly’s AI software through its SciTec subsidiary to mitigate downlink constraints from the Moon.

Firefly Shares Edge Higher

FLY Price Action: At the time of publication, Firefly shares are trading 5.47% higher at $24.11, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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