SpaceX, the space company led by Elon Musk, is preparing to go public on the US stock market with a target valuation of $1.5 trillion. With the offering expected to exceed at least $30 billion, analysts say it could become the largest initial public offering in history.
Bloomberg reported Thursday, citing sources, that SpaceX executives are pursuing a listing as early as mid-to-late 2026. However, the timeline could be adjusted depending on external factors such as market volatility. SpaceX aims to achieve a $1.5 trillion valuation in the IPO. Given that the company is currently estimated to be worth approximately $800 billion, this would represent a near-doubling of its value within a year. Notably, this would surpass Tesla's current market capitalization of approximately $1.4 trillion.
If SpaceX succeeds in going public as planned, it would set a record for the largest IPO ever. The current record holder is Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil company Aramco, which raised $25.6 billion in 2019, surpassing Alibaba's $21.7 billion offering in 2014. However, if SpaceX sells just 5% of its current value, it could raise approximately $40 billion, easily eclipsing Aramco's record.
The rapid surge in SpaceX's valuation reflects its evolution from a rocket launch company into a hybrid enterprise combining infrastructure, communications, and space technology. At the center of this growth is Starlink, its satellite internet business. According to Barron's, SpaceX's revenue is projected to grow from approximately $15.5 billion this year to as much as $24 billion by 2026, with a significant portion expected to come from Starlink. Starlink has established itself as SpaceX's core revenue source, generating stable cash flow through long-term contracts with businesses and governments worldwide. Being the only company in the industry to have commercialized reusable rocket technology is another factor driving up its valuation. With competitors struggling to implement reusable technology, SpaceX maintains its dominant position in the market.
SpaceX plans to invest the funds raised through the IPO into business expansion. Some funds will be allocated to a space-based data center project, with additional resources going toward purchasing semiconductor chips needed for operations. SpaceX's listing is also expected to have significant ripple effects on global capital markets. If SpaceX's high valuation is officially recognized, the entire space industry could be revalued. Additionally, the investment value of companies holding SpaceX stakes, such as Google, is expected to be adjusted upward.
SpaceX's successful listing could also reinvigorate the US IPO market, observers say. Anthropic, the developer of AI chatbot Claude, is being mentioned as a potential market debutant next year, and OpenAI could also pursue an IPO as early as next year. However, OpenAI has maintained that it currently has no specific listing plans.
