From E-Scooters to Orbit: How Orbital Founder Euwyn Poon Raised $5 Million to Build Space Data Centers

Euwryn Poon, the entrepreneur previously known for deploying a fleet of 250,000 electric scooters as a founder of Spin, is now setting his sights significantly higher—literally. Poon’s latest venture, Orbital, has successfully secured $5 million in seed funding to pioneer the development of space-based data centers. The ambitious project aims to eventually launch a constellation of 10,000 data centers into orbit, marking a pivotal shift in the burgeoning space infrastructure economy.

The transition from terrestrial micro-mobility to orbital infrastructure might seem disparate, but Poon views the two through a similar lens of logistics and scale. At Spin, Poon mastered the complexities of manufacturing and deploying hardware at a massive scale while managing fleet operations in urban environments. He now intends to apply those hard-earned lessons in mass manufacturing and systems engineering to the final frontier. The goal is to democratize access to space computing, offering a platform that operates beyond the constraints of Earth-based power grids and real estate limitations.

The concept of space data centers has gained traction in recent years as the demand for global connectivity and data processing surges. By situating data centers in orbit, companies can potentially reduce latency for satellite communications, eliminate the risks associated with terrestrial natural disasters, and utilize abundant solar energy. However, the challenges are equally astronomical, involving high launch costs, thermal management in a vacuum, and the need for radiation-hardened electronics.

Orbital’s $5 million raise signals early investor confidence that Poon is the right person to tackle these hurdles. While the funding is a modest start compared to the capital required to launch 10,000 units, it serves as a critical springboard for prototyping and initial testing. The investment highlights a growing trend where veterans of the tech hardware and software sectors are migrating toward the space industry, bringing with them agile development methodologies and scalable manufacturing expertise.

As the space economy matures, infrastructure plays like Orbital are becoming increasingly attractive. Rather than focusing solely on launch vehicles or satellite imagery, Poon is betting on the foundational layer of digital infrastructure in space. If successful, Orbital could redefine how data is processed and stored, moving the backbone of the internet from server farms on the ground to a distributed network orbiting the Earth. The journey from city streets to low Earth orbit is a long one, but Poon’s track record suggests he has the engineering acumen to navigate the path.