Published: December 9, 2025
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is now openly preparing for what could become the biggest stock market debut in history. According to fresh reports on December 9, 2025, the company is working toward an initial public offering (IPO) in mid‑to‑late 2026, aiming to raise well above $30 billion at a valuation of around $1.5 trillion. [1]
At the same time, SpaceX is testing private-market valuations as high as $800 billion via secondary share sales, while Musk publicly disputes that the company is currently raising capital at that level. [2]
Below is a concise, news-style breakdown of the latest SpaceX IPO news, forecasts, and analysis as of December 9, 2025, together with context on Starlink, valuation scenarios, and what all of this means for would‑be investors.
What Happened on December 9, 2025?
On December 9, Reuters, citing a new Bloomberg report, confirmed that SpaceX management and advisers are actively pursuing a public listing for the entire company — not just the Starlink division — as soon as mid‑to‑late 2026. [3]
Key points from the latest reporting:
- Target valuation: About $1.5 trillion at IPO
- Capital to raise: “Significantly more than” $30 billion, which would eclipse Saudi Aramco’s $29 billion listing in 2019 and make SpaceX the largest IPO ever. [4]
- Business being listed: The entire SpaceX group, including Starlink, reversing earlier ideas of spinning off Starlink separately. [5]
- Use of proceeds: Funding space‑based data centers and specialized AI chips in orbit — a new “underrated” business line Musk has highlighted as a future valuation driver. [6]
- Revenue projections: Around $15 billion in 2025, rising to $22–24 billion in 2026, with Starlink as the main revenue engine. [7]
Importantly, the IPO timing is not locked in. Sources stress that the deal could slip into 2027 depending on market conditions. [8]
How Recent Share-Sale Rumors Set the Stage
Before today’s Bloomberg/Reuters scoop, the narrative around SpaceX’s future IPO was dominated by reports of:
- A secondary share sale that would value SpaceX at up to $800 billion — double a previous $400 billion secondary valuation. [9]
- Employee and investor liquidity programs allowing insiders to sell shares at prices implied by those valuations. [10]
The Wall Street Journal and Financial Times both reported that SpaceX was in talks to price insider shares such that the headline valuation could reach $800 billion, potentially making SpaceX the world’s most valuable private company, ahead of OpenAI at roughly $500 billion. [11]
However, Musk took to X (formerly Twitter) to deny that SpaceX is raising capital at an $800 billion valuation, describing those reports as “not accurate.” He emphasized that SpaceX has been cash‑flow positive for years and that the company primarily conducts periodic buybacks to give employees and early investors liquidity. [12]
Independent analysis of SpaceX’s funding history suggests a more conservative private valuation path:
- Roughly $140 billion valuation in early 2024
- Around $200 billion by mid‑2025 after subsequent private rounds
- Rumors and modeling pushing theoretical valuations into the $300–400+ billion range, depending on Starlink’s growth and Starship’s commercialization. [13]
Today’s IPO planning news sits on top of this backdrop of soaring private valuations, liquidity events, and shifting guidance from Musk himself.
Is the SpaceX IPO Official Yet?
Short answer: no — at least not in the legal sense.
- No SEC S‑1 filing has been made public.
- The company has not formally confirmed an IPO date in a press release.
- All timelines come from leaks and background briefings to outlets such as The Information, Reuters, and Bloomberg. [14]
According to reporting summarized by Reuters and Inc., SpaceX has told some investors to circle the second half of 2026 for a potential IPO that includes Starlink. [15]
Musk has not publicly contradicted the idea of a 2026 IPO window — only the $800 billion fundraising narrative. That leaves markets in a familiar place: treating the 2026 IPO plan as highly likely but still unofficial.
For now, investors should view the SpaceX IPO date as a working target, not a guaranteed calendar event.
Where Does Starlink’s Own IPO Fit In?
For years, most speculation centered on a Starlink IPO, not a SpaceX one.
Musk has repeatedly said he would consider taking Starlink public once its cash flow is “predictable”, and that he is in no rush to expose the business to quarterly earnings pressure. [16]
Recent analysis of Starlink’s situation highlights:
- No confirmed Starlink IPO date as of late 2025. [17]
- Starlink remains a division of SpaceX, with no separate ticker symbol or SEC filing. [18]
- Analysts estimate Starlink could be worth $30–300+ billion on its own, depending on subscriber growth and timing. [19]
Several investor guides now suggest that a full SpaceX IPO including Starlink may come before or instead of a clean spin‑off, giving public investors broad exposure in a single listing. [20]
At the same time, Starlink is already behaving like a major standalone business:
- Millions of subscribers across 70+ countries
- Recurring subscription revenue, plus wholesale and enterprise deals
- The largest satellite constellation ever deployed in low Earth orbit. [21]
That scale makes Starlink a central pillar of any IPO valuation story for the combined SpaceX entity.
SpaceX’s New AI Angle: Space-Based Data Centers
One of the most intriguing revelations behind the IPO plan is SpaceX’s push into space‑based data centers for AI workloads.
According to Bloomberg’s reporting, summarized by Reuters and MarketWatch:
- SpaceX intends to use much of the IPO cash to build orbital data centers, including purchasing specialized chips to power them. [22]
- Musk has called this an “underrated” business that could be a major driver of SpaceX’s future valuation, potentially helping double the company’s value from around $400 billion toward $800 billion and beyond. [23]
The logic is straightforward:
- AI data centers are power‑hungry and increasingly constrained by land, cooling, and grid capacity.
- SpaceX already controls the launch infrastructure and the Starlink network, giving it a unique distribution channel for orbital compute.
- Satellites plus space‑based compute could theoretically offer low‑latency global coverage and flexible capacity deployment.
Ark Invest and other bullish analysts have floated long‑term valuation scenarios of $2.5 trillion or more for SpaceX by 2030, assuming Starlink and space‑based AI infrastructure both scale aggressively. [24]
Whether those projections prove realistic or not, they help explain why a 2026 SpaceX IPO might justify such an eye‑popping valuation multiple.
Valuation: How Rich Is a $1.5 Trillion SpaceX IPO?
Based on Bloomberg/Reuters forecasts of $22–24 billion in revenue for 2026, a $1.5 trillion IPO would value SpaceX at roughly 63–68 times forward sales. [25]
In comparison:
- Mature aerospace primes (Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Airbus) typically trade in the single‑digit to low‑teens EV/EBITDA range, not dozens of times sales. [26]
- Even high‑growth tech giants rarely sustain price‑to‑sales ratios above the 20–30x level for long.
Analysts and commentators are split:
- Skeptics argue that an $800 billion private valuation — let alone $1.5 trillion — demands extraordinary profitability, far above current earnings power and ahead of proven Starship revenue. [27]
- Optimists counter that SpaceX is not just a launch provider, but also a dominant global broadband network and potentially a key AI infrastructure player, deserving “frontier tech” multiples. [28]
Either way, if the IPO goes ahead at the rumored numbers, investors should expect intense debate over valuation — and potentially high volatility — during the first years of trading.
How Could the SpaceX IPO Be Structured?
While details will only become clear once a formal prospectus appears, current reporting and precedent suggest a few likely features:
- Entire company IPO, not just Starlink
Bloomberg, Reuters and The Information all indicate that the working plan is to float SpaceX as a whole, with Starlink included. [29] - Employee liquidity baked in
SpaceX already runs semiannual stock buybacks and secondary sales for employees and early investors; an IPO would formalize liquidity but may also lock up insider shares for a defined period (often 6–12 months). [30] - Control structure favoring Musk
Although unconfirmed, it’s plausible SpaceX could adopt a dual‑class share structure similar to other tech listings, ensuring Musk retains significant voting power even after going public. This would align with his stated desire to avoid excessive short‑term market pressure. - Potential index inclusion and ETF flows
At a trillion‑plus valuation, SpaceX would be a prime candidate for eventual inclusion in major equity indices, drawing large inflows from passive ETFs — though this process usually takes months to years after listing.
Can You Invest in SpaceX or Starlink Before the IPO?
Right now, ordinary retail investors cannot buy SpaceX or Starlink stock directly.
However, several avenues provide indirect or pre‑IPO exposure, each with caveats:
- Secondary private markets such as EquityZen and similar platforms occasionally list SpaceX shares sourced from employees or early investors — but these are typically limited to accredited investors meeting income or net‑worth thresholds. [31]
- Some mutual funds and ETFs focused on innovation and space — for example, certain ARK funds — hold stakes in SpaceX through private placements, giving small indirect exposure to public investors. [32]
- Guides from Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, SmartAsset and others also mention Tesla as a potential “gateway” exposure, based on Musk’s past suggestion that long‑term Tesla shareholders might get preferential access to a future Starlink IPO, though this is not a formal guarantee. [33]
For Starlink specifically, multiple investor education sites reiterate:
- No Starlink ticker exists yet
- Starlink is not publicly traded on any exchange
- There is no official Starlink IPO date as of 2025, though a 2026–2027 window is frequently discussed. [34]
Important: All of the above is informational, not investment advice. Pre‑IPO and secondary-market investments are illiquid, high‑risk, and suitable only for investors who fully understand those risks.
Key Risks Around a SpaceX IPO
Even with enormous excitement, a SpaceX IPO would come with material risks:
- Execution risk
Starship must transition from test flights to reliable commercial operations, especially for NASA lunar missions and large satellite deployments. Delays or failures could pressure both revenue and valuation expectations. [35] - Regulatory and political risk
SpaceX depends heavily on government contracts (NASA, DoD) and radio spectrum allocation for Starlink and direct‑to‑cell offerings. Changes in U.S. or international policy could reshape the opportunity. [36] - Capital intensity
Launch infrastructure, mega‑constellations, and space‑based data centers demand massive ongoing capex, even if Starlink’s subscription base keeps growing. - Governance and “key person” risk
Musk’s leadership is a major asset but also a source of volatility. Investors will scrutinize any dual‑class structure, succession planning, and cross‑company time allocation among Tesla, X, and other ventures.
What to Watch Between Now and a 2026 SpaceX IPO
If you’re tracking the SpaceX IPO story for 2026, these milestones will matter most:
- Formal SEC filing (S‑1)
The first definitive sign that the IPO is live. It will reveal detailed financials, governance, risk factors, and share structures. - Further news on secondary share sales
Pricing and demand in private transactions will shape expectations for public‑market valuation. [37] - Starship launch cadence & reliability
A successful shift to frequent, reusable Starship flights would support the most bullish revenue and valuation models. [38] - Starlink profitability metrics
Subscriber growth, churn, and margins will determine whether Starlink truly deserves a large share of the $1.5 trillion valuation case. [39] - Announcements on space‑based data centers and AI partnerships
Any concrete contracts or technical demonstrations would lend credibility to Musk’s thesis that orbital compute is the next big SpaceX profit center. [40]
Bottom Line
As of December 9, 2025, SpaceX is:
- Still a private company, not yet listed
- Actively preparing for a mid‑to‑late 2026 IPO that could raise $30+ billion and value it at around $1.5 trillion
- Testing private‑market valuations up to $800 billion, while Musk publicly disputes that it is currently raising at that level
- Leaning on Starlink and a new space‑based AI data‑center vision as central pillars of its growth and valuation story. [41]
For investors, the message is clear: the SpaceX IPO is moving from rumor to roadmap, but the final details — valuation, timing, structure, and risk profile — will only be settled when the company steps into the glare of public markets.
Until then, any position in SpaceX or Starlink — direct or indirect, pre‑IPO or via related funds and partners — should be treated as speculative, high‑risk exposure in a still‑evolving story.
References
1. www.reuters.com, 2. www.reuters.com, 3. www.reuters.com, 4. techcrunch.com, 5. techcrunch.com, 6. www.reuters.com, 7. www.reuters.com, 8. www.reuters.com, 9. www.reuters.com, 10. techcrunch.com, 11. www.reuters.com, 12. www.inc.com, 13. applyingai.com, 14. www.reuters.com, 15. www.reuters.com, 16. capital.com, 17. capital.com, 18. capital.com, 19. www.ultimamarkets.com, 20. www.reuters.com, 21. capital.com, 22. www.reuters.com, 23. www.marketwatch.com, 24. www.marketwatch.com, 25. www.reuters.com, 26. applyingai.com, 27. applyingai.com, 28. www.forbes.com, 29. www.reuters.com, 30. applyingai.com, 31. smartasset.com, 32. www.fool.com, 33. www.nasdaq.com, 34. capital.com, 35. applyingai.com, 36. capital.com, 37. www.reuters.com, 38. applyingai.com, 39. capital.com, 40. www.reuters.com, 41. www.reuters.com
