Kristen Smith 
- Starfire is a system-on-chip pairing eight processor cores with a neural processing unit and integrated graphics
- Two configurations are on offer: a 10-watt version delivering up to 45 TOPS and a 35-watt version reaching up to 75 TOPS
- Radiation testing is still underway, with Intel expecting it to wrap by the end of the third quarter
Intel has developed a space-grade processor called Starfire, designed to run artificial intelligence and data-processing workloads aboard spacecraft, SpaceNews reported Monday. Sean O’Neill, deputy director of product development at Intel Government Technologies, said the chip should reach customers by the end of the year.
The company recently published a fact sheet on the processor. Intel funded the development internally and has not disclosed how much it spent. “We have skin in the game,” O’Neill told the outlet.
Intel is a sponsor of the Potomac Officers Club’s 2026 Air and Space Summit on July 30 in McLean, Virginia, where space technologies, artificial intelligence and advanced networks are on the agenda. The event will convene senior government leaders, military officials and industry executives. Register now.
What Can the Intel Starfire Processor Do Onboard a Satellite?
Starfire is a system-on-chip, meaning it packages several computing functions into a single device rather than distributing them across separate parts. It pairs eight processor cores with a neural processing unit and integrated graphics, an arrangement meant to cut the size, weight and power a spacecraft must devote to computing.
Intel is offering two configurations. The low-power version carries a 10-watt thermal design power and delivers up to 45 tera operations per second, or TOPS. The performance version runs at 35 watts and reaches up to 75 TOPS. Both use four performance cores and four low-power efficiency cores, with the performance cores clocked higher.
The chip supports LPDDR5 and DDR5 memory and 12 lanes of PCIe Gen4. Intel rates the junction operating temperature from minus 55 to 125 degrees Celsius and the service life at more than 10 years.
O’Neill said the processor is designed to handle routine spacecraft functions, including telemetry, command sequencing and data compression, as well as AI tasks such as image analytics, object detection and sensor fusion.
When Will Starfire Be Available to Satellite Builders?
Radiation characterization is still running, covering total ionizing dose, single-event latchup and single-event effects. O’Neill said Intel expects testing to finish before the end of the third quarter — the same window in which the fact sheet lists samples as available.
A first flight could come this year. Federal agencies have discussed carrying Starfire on an experimental mission, O’Neill said, though none is scheduled, and separate partnership agreements with government organizations and channel partners remain unnamed.
How Is Intel Manufacturing the Starfire Processor?
The processor cores are built on Intel’s 18A process and the graphics cores on Intel 3, packaged together using the company’s Foveros multi-chip approach. Some components come from overseas suppliers. Assembly, screening and qualification to space-grade standards all happen domestically. Starfire runs Ubuntu Linux and uses Intel’s x86 instruction set.
