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Alphabet spins off laser-based Internet backbone provider Taara


Goal is to compete with Starlink, connecting remote areas to the Internet.

Krishnaswamy, Taara’s general manager, says the next stage of development is a tiny silicon photonic chip that will obviate the need for many of the terminals’ mirrors and lenses and allow multiple connections from one transmitter. While Musk’s business sells subscriptions directly to consumers, Taara partners with large telecommunication companies such as Bharti Airtel and T-Mobile, extending their core fibre-optic networks to far-flung locations or within dense urban areas where laying cables is expensive or impossible. That makes Starlink most effective in remote areas or on cruise ships and in airlines, but it is unable to compete with wired fiber- or light-based systems in cities at its current capacity.

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