Google invests in 7,000 km submarine cable linking US and Europe

Google just laid the groundwork, literally, on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean. The company’s Nuvem submarine cable, stretching roughly 7,000 kilometers from South Carolina to Portugal, is on track to become operational in the second half of 2026. It’s the first transatlantic cable system fully owned and financed by Google, and it’s designed to carry approximately 384 terabits per second of data capacity. What Google is actually building The Nuvem system runs from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, across to Sines, Portugal, with strategic landing points in Bermuda and the Azores along the way. The cable features 16 fiber pairs, each capable of pushing roughly 24 Tbps. Google Cloud VP Brian Quigley first announced the project on September 25, 2023, and the Portugal connection was reported as completed on July 21, 2026. Construction supplier SubCom, one of the world’s leading submarine cable manufacturers, handled the physical build. Google is running the entire operation through its subsidiary Starfish Infrastructure, ensuring compliance with FCC regulations while keeping full ownership and control. That’s a notable departure from the consortium model that has historically dominated sub...