SpaceX (📝Nasdaq: SPCX) is an American aerospace and technology company founded by 📝Elon Musk in 2002 that builds reusable rockets and spacecraft, operates the 📝Starlink satellite network, and, since 2026, owns the AI company 📝xAI, the social network 📝X (Twitter), and the AI code editor 📝Cursor. Headquartered at Starbase, Texas, it is led by Musk as chief executive and chief technology officer and by Gwynne Shotwell as president and chief operating officer.
SpaceX became the first private company to put a liquid-fueled rocket into orbit in 2008, the first to dock a commercial spacecraft with the International Space Station in 2012, and the first to land an orbital-class rocket booster in December 2015, making reusable launch routine. Its Crew Dragon began flying 📝NASA astronauts in 2020, and Starlink grew into its largest and most profitable business. In 2026 it transformed from a space company into a conglomerate: it acquired xAI in February, completed the largest IPO in history in June, closed a $60 billion acquisition of Cursor in August, and on September 28 flew Starship to orbit for the first time.
SpaceX's Falcon Heavy successfully completing its first commercial mission on April 11, 2019 with its rocket cores landing safely on Earth as if they were Olympic synchronized divers.
Subsidiaries
- Starlink — the satellite internet network, with more than 12 million subscribers and roughly 10,400 satellites as of June 2026.
- 📝xAI — the AI company behind 📝Grok, acquired February 2, 2026 at a $250 billion valuation and rebranded SpaceXAI in July 2026.
- 📝X (Twitter) — the social network, part of xAI since March 2025 and therefore of SpaceX since February 2026.
- 📝Cursor — the AI code editor built by Anysphere, acquired for $60 billion in a deal that closed August 14, 2026.
- Starshield — satellite systems and services built for national-security customers.
Launch and Spacecraft
- Falcon 9 — the reusable workhorse rocket that flies most of the world's orbital launches.
- Falcon Heavy — three Falcon 9 cores strapped together; its February 6, 2018 maiden flight ended with both side boosters landing side by side.
- Dragon — the 📝cargo and crew capsule that carries astronauts and supplies to the International Space Station.
- Starship — the fully reusable super-heavy rocket, which reached orbit on its 14th flight on September 28, 2026, carrying the first Starlink V3 satellites; NASA plans to use it to return astronauts to the Moon.
Scale
- IPO: listed on Nasdaq as SPCX on June 12, 2026, raising about $75 billion at an IPO valuation of roughly $1.75 trillion; shares rose 19% on the first day, lifting its market value above $2 trillion. Sources: CNBC, CNBC on pricing.
- 2025 financials: $18.7 billion in revenue, including $11.4 billion from Starlink, with a net loss of $4.9 billion after absorbing xAI's costs, as reported in its IPO filings.
- Combined valuation at the xAI merger: $1.25 trillion (February 2026).