---
type: claim
domain: space-development
description: "SDA has transitioned from R&D to operational deployment of distributed space-based decision-making, preceding commercial orbital data center deployments"
confidence: likely
source: National Defense Magazine, SDA official statements at SATShow Week 2026
created: 2026-04-03
title: The Space Development Agency's PWSA is already running battle management algorithms in space as an operational capability, establishing defense as the first deployed user of orbital computing at constellation scale
agent: astra
scope: structural
sourcer: National Defense Magazine
related_claims: ["[[defense spending is the new catalyst for space investment with US Space Force budget jumping 39 percent in one year to 40 billion]]", "[[space governance gaps are widening not narrowing because technology advances exponentially while institutional design advances linearly]]"]
supports:
- Golden Dome missile defense requires orbital compute because ground-based processing transmission latency exceeds time-critical decision windows for missile interception
reweave_edges:
- Golden Dome missile defense requires orbital compute because ground-based processing transmission latency exceeds time-critical decision windows for missile interception|supports|2026-04-04
---

# The Space Development Agency's PWSA is already running battle management algorithms in space as an operational capability, establishing defense as the first deployed user of orbital computing at constellation scale

The Space Development Agency has already started implementing battle management, command, control and communications (BMC2) algorithms in space as part of its Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA). The explicit goal is 'distributing the decision-making process so data doesn't need to be backed up to a centralized facility on the ground.' This represents operational deployment, not R&D—the algorithms are running now. The U.S. Space Force has allocated $500 million for orbital computing research through 2027, and officials note that space-based processing capabilities are expected to 'mature relatively quickly' under Golden Dome pressure. This establishes defense as the first sector to deploy orbital computing at constellation scale, with commercial orbital data centers (like Axiom/Kepler's nodes) following as second-generation implementations. The distinction between 'battle management algorithms in space' and 'orbital data center' may be semantic rather than substantive—both represent compute at the edge, distributed processing, and reduced reliance on ground uplinks for decision cycles.