China launches world's first in-orbit AI commercial hypersatellite

China's Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center launched the world's first in-orbit artificial intelligence (AI) commercial hypersatellite on Saturday from waters off the coast of Yangjiang City in south China's Guangdong Province.

A Smart Dragon-3 (SD-3) carrier rocket blasted off at 11:06 a.m. (Beijing Time) from the launch site, sending a group of nine satellites, including the AI commercial hypersatellite and a distant retrograde orbit (DRO) satellite, into planned orbit. 

In addition, the SD-03 sent the Egyptian NExSat-1 satellite into orbit this time as well, marking its first international payload launch. 

Developed by Guoxing Aerospace Technology Co., Ltd. in Chengdu City of southwest China's Sichuan Province, the AI commercial hypersatellite, named "Rongpiao" or "Xingshidai-18," is a new integrated sensing network satellite equipped with the company's sixth generation "satellite brain" system.

The AI satellite is designed to carry out on-orbit verification of the synaesthesia fusion AI algorithm once entering the orbit, and will have remote integrated platform capability for future communication networks.

The mission was the third flight of the SD-03 carrier rocket.