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Liu Zhen

Japan’s plan to develop tactical satellites equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) would boost its long-range offensive strike capabilities and pose a serious threat, Chinese state media has warned.
The Japanese Nikkei newspaper reported last week that the planned AI-equipped satellites would be capable of analysing surveillance intelligence in space. The aim is to speed up targeting decisions and strengthen the country’s “counterstrike capability”, such as missile guidance.
According to the report, the defence ministry will develop a prototype satellite with domestic companies and conduct ground tests in the coming years, with space launches expected from the 2030 financial year.
Funding for the project has been included in Japan’s draft defence budget request for the 2027 financial year, although the exact amount has not been disclosed.
While traditional reconnaissance spacecraft send raw images to the ground for processing, these devices will collect data from other satellites and process the information in orbit.


By only sending the AI-generated analysis results, the Japanese project aims to significantly reduce the time for space-to-ground communication, according to the Nikkei report.
The AI-assisted satellites will support ground command’s rapid decision-making by identifying enemy forces’ locations in space and predicting the movements of mobile targets, such as warships approaching Japan’s remote islands.
They would also be able to provide real-time target information to Japan’s long-range missiles, helping to update their guidance and improve strike accuracy, the report said.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said on Tuesday that the AI satellites served as a cornerstone of Japan’s broader space militarisation strategy, as Tokyo upgraded its Air Self-Defence Force to an Air and Space Self-Defence Force – officially designating space as an operational domain.
According to military commentator Shao Yongling, the technology could compress the intelligence cycle from tens of minutes or hours to minutes or even seconds, enabling Japan to track time-sensitive mobile targets more effectively.
Additionally, sending processed intelligence rather than large volumes of raw imagery could reduce the satellite’s exposure to electronic surveillance and jamming. If ground stations were jammed, the AI satellites could even directly guide strike units, she noted.
Shao said that Japan’s development of tactical AI satellites was intended to reduce its reliance on US intelligence for long-range strikes and establish a space-based intelligence and kill chain under its own control.
“The purpose is … to independently complete target detection, identification and coordinate generation, to reduce the risk of being restricted by the US chokepoints and secure greater operational autonomy within the alliance,” she said.
According to Nikkei, the AI for the satellites is expected to be domestically developed, while the information processing system will come from a US company that has taken part in projects for the US Space Force. The report did not name the companies involved.




Last year, US start-up Starcloud successfully tested in-orbit AI training and inference using a satellite powered by an Nvidia chip. Google has also announced its Suncatcher space-based AI data centre project – aiming to launch two prototype satellites equipped with its own chips by early next year.
China has also been developing its own space-based AI capabilities. The first batch of 12 satellites for the Three-Body Computing Constellation was launched in May 2025, with plans to deploy up to 100 by 2027.
The constellation is reported to be the largest operational space-based computing system to date, with a capacity of 5 petaflops – each petaflop equals one quadrillion floating-point operations per second.
The constellation carries AI models that are specialised in areas including Earth remote sensing, astronomy and weather forecasting.


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China

Military

State broadcaster CCTV says satellite plan is a cornerstone of Tokyo’s broader space militarisation strategy


State broadcaster CCTV says satellite plan is a cornerstone of Tokyo’s broader space militarisation strategy.


Aerospace: Geopolitics

Artificial intelligence (AI)

United States

Japan

Japan’s AI satellites and other space ambitions ‘a serious threat’, China warns

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}State broadcaster CCTV says satellite plan is a cornerstone of Tokyo’s broader space militarisation strategy

State broadcaster CCTV says satellite plan is a cornerstone of Tokyo’s broader space militarisation strategy