Elon Musk is already working on the SpaceX IPO, his to start up of space services, in 2026. An operation in which the company could exceed 1.5 trillion dollars (nearly 1.28 trillion euros) in valuation, thus becoming the largest IPO in history. Currently, the company is touting the strong growth of Starlink, its satellite Internet access business, to attract investors, always interested in the tycoon’s industrial and technological projects.
Thus, Starlink has just announced that it has reached nine million active customers with high-speed Internet spread across 155 countries. This figure represents an acceleration in growth, since the firm had reached eight million users in November and seven million in August. The company is onboarding more than 21,200 new customers daily since reaching eight million, with a growth rate of 49.3% higher than that recorded the previous month.
With this growth, Starlink can become a new rival to traditional telecommunications companies, already severely penalized by competitive pressure, especially in areas with the worst terrestrial infrastructure. SpaceX has also made a big financial push this year to strengthen its position, allocating nearly $20 billion to buy U.S. cell phone spectrum owned by Echostar.
Elon Musk’s company could face competition in 2026 from Amazon, which is finalizing the launch of commercial Internet access services from its subsidiary Leo (formerly Kuiper). Starlink, however, is ahead of the company founded by Jeff Bezos, thanks to its more than 9,000 satellites, which could reach 10,000 by next year. Leo already has around 180 satellites in orbit, with a goal of reaching 3,000.
Additionally, SpaceX broke its own record for rocket launches this year, with more than 170, becoming a world leader. Among them, 165 corresponded to its Falcon 9 rocket, mainly intended for the deployment of Starlink, and five missions to test Starship, the giant fully reusable vehicle designed for future missions to Mars and the Moon.
The company continues to strengthen its facilities. According to the American press, the Trump administration is considering an agreement to transfer 775 acres of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge to SpaceX in order to expand its Starbase base in Texas. In exchange, the company would cede 692 acres of its property to the U.S. government.
The truth is that the market is very aware of SpaceX’s moves on its way to the stock market. The company recently closed an employee stock sale worth $800 billion, up from $400 billion in a similar transaction last summer. Additionally, SpaceX has become the to start up the most valuable in the world ahead of OpenAI, valued at 500 billion, and Anthropic, valued at 350 billion. This valuation also consolidated Elon Musk as the richest man in the world, whose fortune could exceed a trillion dollars with the aforementioned IPO.
With this IPO, the company could raise more than $30 billion, more than the funds raised by Aramco in its market debut in 2019. These resources would be used to finance ambitious projects in the coming years, including the aforementioned missions to Mars and the Moon. In the latter case, the company is considering the construction of a base.
In the IPO process, SpaceX is working on hiring the placement entity. According to Reuters, Morgan Stanley is the favorite, ahead of Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan.
Investors will be very attentive to the financial development of the company. SpaceX will close this year with revenues near $15 billion, aiming to reach a range between $22 billion and $24 billion in 2026.
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