Planet Labs Stock Pops After 20 Satellite Launch

Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL) shares are jumping Friday after the company announced the launch of 20 satellites aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket Thursday. Planet Labs stock is showing exceptional strength. Why are PL shares rallying? Planet Labs Satellites Carry Google’s AI Chips Into Orbit SpaceX Exploration Technologies Corp.’s (NASDAQ:SPCX) Transporter-18 mission lifted off Thursday from Vandenberg Air Force Base, deploying every payload successfully by early afternoon. Among them were Planet Labs satellites, including a solar-powered prototype built around Google’s custom AI chips, CNBC reported. Planet Labs’ CEO Will Marshall noted Thursday’s mission was the company’s fourth launch of the year, with another planned in a couple of weeks, and called it “the first time we’re flying TPUs to space.” Marshall said the mission is meant to test how some of the fastest machine learning hardware available performs once in orbit, working alongside Google to gauge how the chips hold up as a step toward the longer-term goal of eventually placing full data centers in space. What Planet Labs Does Planet Labs runs a fleet of satellites that photographs the planet daily, with the goal of turning that imagery into information people can actually act on. The company pairs its photos with data analysis and machine learning tools, giving customers a way to track real-world changes and respond to them quickly. Its offerings range from broad regional monitoring to more specific tools like Planet Monitoring and Planet Tasking, along with analytic feeds, basemaps and other data products. Customers span a wide range of industries, including agriculture, energy, infrastructure, forestry, land management, maritime tracking and mapping, along with a substantial base of government clients tied to defense and intelligence work. PL Shares Are Soaring PL Price Action: Planet Labs shares were up 8.05% at $17.45 at the time of publication on Friday, according to Benzinga Pro. Read Also: Trump Reportedly Asked Elon Musk's Grok What Would Happen if Nicolas Maduro Fell — Here's What the AI Told Him Image: PJ McDonnell/Shutterstock