"Pulverizes". I know that's what the actual headline says, but it is
very misleading. No Starlink satellites were harmed in this experiment. What they actually did is, they moved data much faster than a Starlink satellite does, using a laser.
Well, that's an achievement. Really, it is. They got it to transmit data, through Earth's atmosphere and the turbulence that it contains, at 1 Gb/s. That's amazing.
I bet Starlink can handle more ground stations at once, though. And I bet Starlink does better on a cloudy day. So, while this is interesting, and a great achievement, I'm not sure it's a game changer yet. Others who know more can feel free to correct me...