That model is starting to break down, not because it stopped working, but because the number of satellites in orbit has exploded . A single company can now operate thousands of spacecraft at once, and no ground team can watch that many moving parts in real time. AI on the spacecraft itselfThe simplest change is that satellites are starting to make more decisions on their own, onboard, without waiting for instructions from Earth . A rendering of one of SpaceX's planned "Starmind" AI satellites in orbit. But it does change the job: instead of manually commanding every satellite, ground teams increasingly supervise AI systems that handle the routine, high-volume decisions on their own.