SpaceX unveils blockbuster IPO filing, eyes record $1.75 trillion valuation – Firstpost

Elon Musk’s rocket and satellite company SpaceX unveiled its long-awaited initial public offering filing, opening its books to investors for the first time and setting the stage for what could become the largest and most consequential stock market debut in US history.

The listing could value the company at as much as $1.75 trillion, instantly making SpaceX one of the world’s most valuable publicly traded companies and potentially the second company in Musk’s business empire after Tesla to cross the trillion-dollar mark.

The IPO is expected to become a defining moment for global capital markets and may pave the way for other high-profile technology firms — including OpenAI and Anthropic — to pursue stock market listings later this year.

Founded in 2002, SpaceX transformed the global space industry through the development of reusable rockets capable of landing and flying again, dramatically reducing launch costs and reshaping the economics of space travel. The company’s rise also intensified competition with rivals such as Blue Origin, founded by Jeff Bezos.

While SpaceX became famous for rocket launches and deep-space ambitions, regulatory filings revealed that the bulk of its business now comes from its satellite internet division, Starlink. The company reported revenue of $18.67 billion last year, with Starlink emerging as the dominant contributor.

The filing also underscored how aggressively SpaceX is positioning itself around artificial intelligence infrastructure and computing. The company estimated its total addressable market at $28.5 trillion, with much of that tied to AI-driven businesses and future space-based computing infrastructure.

Musk’s ambitions extend far beyond satellite broadband. The filing outlined long-term goals linked to establishing a permanent human settlement on Mars and developing massive AI data centres in space powered by the equivalent of 100 terawatts of compute infrastructure — roughly equal to 100,000 one-gigawatt nuclear reactors.

SpaceX’s board has tied much of Musk’s future compensation to achieving those highly ambitious targets, reinforcing the billionaire entrepreneur’s increasingly intertwined vision of space exploration and artificial intelligence.

The IPO filing comes during a critical week for the company as it prepares another test launch of its next-generation Starship rocket. The spacecraft is central to Musk’s plans for lunar missions, Mars colonisation and the future expansion of Starlink’s satellite network. A launch initially scheduled for Tuesday is now expected later this week.

The company’s governance structure is also drawing scrutiny. Musk will retain 85.1 per cent of the company’s combined voting power through a dual-class share structure that grants insiders enhanced control. Class B shareholders will receive 10 votes per share, while public investors purchasing Class A shares will have only one vote each.

The filing further revealed extensive protections for management, including provisions that limit shareholder lawsuits, require many legal disputes to go through arbitration and effectively shield Musk from removal by outside shareholders.

Despite rapid revenue growth, profitability remains elusive. SpaceX reported revenue of $4.69 billion for the quarter ended March 31, up from $4.07 billion a year earlier. However, losses widened sharply to $1.27 per share compared with a loss of 18 cents in the same period last year.

The company also disclosed details of its growing integration with Musk’s wider corporate network, often referred to by analysts as the “Muskonomy.” SpaceX recently merged with Musk’s AI startup xAI in a deal valuing the rocket company at $1 trillion and the maker of Grok chatbot at $250 billion.

Investor enthusiasm is expected to be fuelled not only by SpaceX’s dominant position in commercial space, but also by Musk’s global celebrity profile, which analysts say has become a powerful market force in itself.

The company plans to reserve a significant portion of shares for retail investors and is expected to host around 1,500 individual investors at a June event ahead of the listing.

SpaceX is targeting a Nasdaq debut under the ticker symbol “SPCX”, with the share sale expected as early as June 11. The IPO is being led by major Wall Street banks including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase.