SpaceX just filed for what could be the biggest IPO in human history
SpaceX generated $18.67 billion in revenue in 2025, largely from its Starlink satellite internet service, which brought in more than $11 billion, according to the report. The Wall Street Journal. The company lost more than $4.9 billion last year, and its capital expenditures soared to $20.7 billion last year, a jump from $11.2 billion in 2024, according to the report. The New York Times. xAI, which recently merged with SpaceX, lost billions last year while growing revenue 22%, according to TechCrunch.
According to the WSJMusk’s voting shares will give him 85% control of the company. In addition to Musk, SpaceX Chairman Gwynne Shotwell and CFO Bret Johnson, the SEC filing lists several other SpaceX board members, including Google executive Donald Harrison, Tesla board member Ira Ehrenpreis, and investors Randy Glein, Antonio Gracias, Steve Jurvetson and Luke Nosek.
SpaceX describes its mission to investors as follows:
Our mission is to build the systems and technologies necessary to make life multiplanetary, understand the true nature of the universe, and extend the light of consciousness to the stars. To do this, we have created the most ambitious, vertically integrated innovation engine on (and off) Earth, with unmatched capabilities to rapidly manufacture and launch space communications that connect the world, to harness the Sun to power truth-seeking artificial intelligence that advances scientific discovery, and ultimately to build a base on the Moon and cities on other planets.
It also tells them that SpaceX has “identified the largest exploitable total addressable market (TAM) in human history”, potentially worth $28.5 trillion, including $370 billion from space, $1.6 trillion in connectivity with Starlink Broadband and Starlink Mobile, and $26.5 trillion in AI, which includes AI infrastructure, subscriptions, advertising and $22.7 trillion in enterprise applications.
SpaceX currently leads the commercial space launch industry, with its massive Starship V3 rocket scheduled to fly Thursday after a delay. The company also sees orbital data centers as a huge revenue opportunity. In January, SpaceX asked the Federal Communications Commission for permission to launch a million data center satellites into space to support the growing development of AI.
The SEC filing contains a long list of risk factors, including that several of SpaceX’s “anticipated market opportunities, including certain AI industrial and transportation, orbital, lunar and interplanetary activities, are still emerging and evolving or do not currently exist, and these markets may not develop as we anticipate, or at all.” » He also asserts that “its significant level of debt could significantly harm our financial situation”.
For months, rumors have swirled that SpaceX was preparing a historic entry into the market, with rumors pointing to a valuation of $1.75 trillion and a record raise of $75 billion. Now that the documents are public, we finally have our first real look at the finances of the company that standardized reusable rockets, built a space internet monopoly, and absorbed Musk’s xAI and Twitter drags into its orbit.
