Elon Musk's Starlink is about to have a new rival after the European Union confirmed it will join the race to provide high-speed internet to remote areas.

The EU said earlier this week it had finalized plans to build a 10.6 billion euro ($11.1 billion) satellite network to compete with Starlink.

Accordingly, the Iris² satellite constellation will include 280 satellites in low and medium Earth orbit. The service is expected to be operational in 2030.

Previously, European politicians expressed concerns about the risks of becoming dependent on Starlink.

Elon Musk Bloomberg
Elon Musk's Starlink service has a new competitor from Europe. Photo: Bloomberg

SpaceX's satellite internet service has about 7,000 satellites in orbit, according to experts' estimates, and has seen traffic skyrocket in recent years as it expands to more than 100 countries and territories.

Starlink has also played a key role in the war in Ukraine, where the country's military uses Starlink for communications.

In September 2023, the SpaceX boss revealed that he had refused to activate Starlink in Crimea. Musk has also been in frequent conflict with European authorities, who are launching proceedings against his social network X.

Europe is also looking to reduce its reliance on SpaceX rockets with the Ariane 6, a reusable rocket that competes with SpaceX's Falcon 9. It successfully completed its first flight in July.

The EU isn’t the only one developing a rival service to Starlink. Amazon is also working on its own internet satellite project, called Kuiper, with the first satellites scheduled to launch in 2025.

(According to Insider)