NASA Demonstrates Google’s Gemma Large Language Model in Space with NAVI-Orbital
- Published
- Source
- IEEESpectrumAI
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory has successfully sent Google's Gemma 3 to space, marking the first in-orbit demonstration of a vision-language model analyzing satellite imagery. The NAVI-Orbital system utilized Gemma 3 to interpret images from Loft Orbital's YAM-9 satellite, showcasing a new method for scientists to interact with spacecraft through natural language prompts.
This advancement is significant as it allows researchers to bypass traditional structured commands, enabling more intuitive communication with satellites. Juan M. Delfa from NASA highlighted that this shift could enhance how scientists engage with space missions, potentially streamlining operations and improving data analysis.
Looking ahead, the implications of NAVI-Orbital extend beyond image analysis. The system could revolutionize satellite operations by enabling real-time data interpretation and reporting, which is crucial for applications like wildfire detection. No further timeline was disclosed at the time of publication.
Original report
NASA Puts Google’s Gemma Large Language Model in Orbit
IEEESpectrumAI · Matthew S. SmithThis briefing is an independently written summary based on publicly available reporting and is provided for industry information and news discovery. The original report and source publication are credited and linked where applicable. RobotToday does not claim ownership of third-party source material.
Rights concerns? Contact [email protected] with the relevant URL and details. We will review the matter and take appropriate action where warranted.
More related news
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
Related Suppliers
Dexterous Robotics Team, NASA Johnson Space Center
United States
NASA JSC robotics team in Houston behind Robonaut 2, flown on the ISS for seven years, and Valkyrie, NASA's first bipedal humanoid robot.
NASA Astrobee
United States
Free-flying robotic platform from NASA Ames, comprising three cube-shaped robots (Honey, Queen, Bumble) operating aboard the ISS since 2019.
NASA JPL Mobility and Robotic Systems
United States
Pasadena, California NASA JPL group (Section 347) chartered to develop robotics for solar-system exploration, from planetary rovers to autonomous navigation.
Google DeepMind
United Kingdom
Alphabet's London-based AI lab, developer of the Gemini Robotics vision-language-action models and the open-source MuJoCo physics simulator.
Google Ventures (GV)
United States
Alphabet's independent venture capital arm investing in life sciences, AI, robotics, and enterprise technology
Loft Orbital
United States
US space infrastructure firm operating shared YAM satellite buses that hosted the first onboard demo of Google DeepMind's Gemma AI model in orbit.
ZML
France
Paris-based open-source project shipping a hardware-agnostic AI inference compiler stack that runs models on NVIDIA, AMD, TPU, and Trainium chips.
QYSEA Technology 鳍源科技
China
Shenzhen maker, founded 2016, of FIFISH underwater ROVs, from V-EVO and V6 sport drones to E-MASTER, W6 NAVI and X1 industrial units; 130+ countries.
Onus Engineering and Equipments Pvt Ltd
India
Navi Mumbai, India valve and gas-equipment manufacturer operating since 1995; runs a 100,000 square-foot second plant at Dahej GIDC, Gujarat.
CaPow
Israel
Beer Sheva deep-tech startup (est. 2019) with Genesis dynamic wireless charging platform that powers AGV/AMR robot fleets while moving, eliminating downtime.
Starcloud
United States
Starcloud (founded 2024, Redmond WA) launched Starcloud-1, the first satellite with an Nvidia H100 GPU, targeting gigawatt-scale orbital AI data centers.
Terafab
United States
Tesla/SpaceX/xAI semiconductor fab announced March 2026 in Austin TX; produces AI chips for Optimus robots, FSD, and SpaceX satellites.
Robotics needs a service framework.
RSF defines a common language for robot service capability, lifecycle operations, certification pathways, and service-provider networks.
Join the RobotToday community on LinkedIn
Daily robotics news, in-depth analysis, conference highlights, and discussions with professionals worldwide.
