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Over the past year, the biggest SpaceX story has been its historic move toward going public, its merger with xAI, and the rapid evolution of Starship, alongside continued growth in Falcon 9 launches and the Starlink network.

Historic IPO and the SpaceXAI Merger

In the biggest corporate news of the year, SpaceX publicly filed its S-1 registration statement on May 20, 2026, preparing for what is set to be the largest Initial Public Offering (IPO) in history on June 12, 2026, listing on Nasdaq under the ticker SPCX. In its IPO filings, SpaceX is targeting a valuation of $1.75 trillion to $1.8 trillion, setting a fixed share price of $135 to raise up to $75 billion.

This comes on the heels of a monumental merger in February 2026, when SpaceX merged with Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup, xAI, in an all-stock deal that valued the combined company at $1.25 trillion. This deal integrated AI and the social network X into its corporate structure under the newly formed 'SpaceXAI' division. This division plans to deploy solar-powered AI data centers in space, and has already secured a $1.25 billion monthly contract with Anthropic to provide computing power from its Colossus data center, alongside an option to acquire coding tool developer Anysphere (Cursor) for $60 billion.

The S-1 filing also disclosed SpaceX's actual 2025 financial results, revealing a full-year revenue of $18.7 billion—with Starlink connectivity accounting for $11.4 billion of the total—alongside a GAAP net loss of $4.94 billion due to high AI development costs and capital expenditures.

Starship: Progress mixed with setbacks

Major milestones

• SpaceX continued an aggressive Starship test campaign through 2025 and 2026.
• The company demonstrated increasingly sophisticated capabilities, including booster recovery, mock satellite deployment, and improved reentry performance. Test Flight 10 in 2025 successfully completed a controlled splashdown after a demanding reentry profile.
• In May 2026, SpaceX launched Starship V3, the largest and most advanced version of the vehicle to date. V3 includes upgraded Raptor engines, increased performance, and improvements aimed at future lunar and Mars missions.

Recent setback

• The first Starship V3 flight (Flight 12) largely achieved its mission objectives, including deployment of test Starlink satellites and a controlled ship reentry.
• However, the Super Heavy booster failed its planned splashdown, prompting the FAA to require a mishap investigation and temporarily ground further Starship flights pending review.

Launch-rate expansion

• Regulators have approved substantially higher launch cadences at Starbase and are reviewing additional Starship infrastructure in Florida.
• SpaceX has stated ambitions to eventually conduct thousands of orbital launches annually, though regulators have emphasized that reliability improvements will be necessary before such rates become feasible.

Falcon 9 and Starlink

While Starship attracts most headlines, Falcon 9 remains SpaceX's workhorse:

• SpaceX conducted approximately 170 launches during 2025, deploying thousands of satellites and payloads.
• Starlink continued expanding as the world's largest satellite constellation, with ongoing deployments supporting broadband service growth.
• Falcon 9 maintained one of the highest launch rates in the commercial space industry, reinforcing SpaceX's dominant position in launch services.

NASA Artemis and lunar plans

• Starship remains NASA's selected lunar lander for future Artemis missions.
• In February 2026, SpaceX announced a major strategic pivot, deprioritizing its immediate Mars colonization timeline to focus heavily on establishing a self-growing lunar city ('Lunar Base Alpha') first, utilizing the Moon's shorter trip times and frequent launch windows for rapid iteration.
• SpaceX's next major objectives include orbital refueling demonstrations, long-duration space operations, and an uncrewed lunar landing before astronauts can use Starship for lunar missions.
• Recent difficulties at competitor Blue Origin have increased attention on SpaceX's role in NASA's lunar architecture.

What to watch next

The key developments likely to dominate SpaceX news through the rest of 2026 are:

1. Resolution of the FAA investigation into Flight 12.The upcoming June 12 IPO on Nasdaq and the integration of the SpaceXAI division.
2. Additional Starship V3 test flights.Resolution of the FAA investigation and additional Starship V3 test flights.
3. Demonstrations of orbital propellant transfer.
4. Continued Starlink expansion and Falcon 9 launch cadence.
5. Progress toward NASA's Artemis lunar landing goals and the newly prioritized 'Lunar Base Alpha'.

In short, the past year has been characterized by steady operational success for Falcon 9 and Starlink, alongside massive corporate restructuring ahead of a historic IPO, while Starship has moved from basic flight testing toward proving the capabilities needed for lunar missions—though it continues to encounter the kinds of technical setbacks typical of a highly ambitious rocket-development program.