Amazon’s Project Kuiper Lags Behind in Satellite Internet Race

Amazon’s Project Kuiper is reportedly struggling to keep up with SpaceX’s Starlink due to production delays and a slow start in satellite manufacturing.

Let’s talk about Amazon’s Project Kuiper—because, wow, is it having a tough time keeping up with SpaceX’s Starlink. A deep dive by Bloomberg reveals the project’s crawling pace, thanks to satellite production that’s more snail mail than broadband. Picture this: a few dozen satellites versus Starlink’s sky-high 7,000. Yeah, it’s not looking great.

Here’s the kicker: production didn’t even start until late last year. And just when you thought things couldn’t get more delayed, the launch of 27 satellites got pushed from April 8 to April 28. Talk about bad timing, especially when Amazon’s dreaming big—400 million households and remote areas needing over 3,000 satellites. Ambitious? Understatement of the year.

But wait, there’s a silver lining (or so they say). Amazon’s spokesperson is all, “We’ve designed some of the most advanced communications satellites ever built…” and insists everything’s on schedule. Yet, with a government deadline breathing down their necks—1,600 satellites by next summer—whispers suggest an FCC extension might be in the cards. Surprise, surprise.

Don’t count Kuiper out just yet, though. Those two prototype satellites launched in late 2023? They’re not just floating space junk. They’ve been testing an optical mesh network, which sounds fancy because it is. And with launches planned (thanks to pals like Arianespace, Blue Origin, and, ironically, SpaceX), Amazon’s not throwing in the towel. But let’s be real: catching up to Starlink? That’s a space race of epic proportions.