Musk Has One- Word Response to Report of Starlink IPO

Elon Musk is countering reports suggesting SpaceX is considering spinning off its Starlink satellite business in an initial public offering as soon as next year. Though the SpaceX CEO described the report as "false" on Wednesday, Bloomberg reported that SpaceX had already begun moving Starlink's assets to a wholly owned subsidiary ahead of the IPO. It cited sources who asked to remain anonymous to discuss private conversations in which officials spoke of an IPO as early as 2024. The report came less than a week after billionaire investor Ron Baron said Starlink would go public in "2027 or so," per Quartz. Bloomberg stressed that no final decision had been made and the IPO could be delayed to 2025.

Back in 2021, Musk stated Starlink would go public once its cash flow could be predicted "reasonably well." Last year, Musk said Starlink was still losing money. But early this month, he claimed Starlink had achieved cash flow breakeven, per Reuters. "Starlink is also now a majority of all active satellites and will have launched a ... majority of all satellites cumulatively from Earth by next year," Musk wrote in a post on X. Starlink counts more than 5,000 satellites, which provide high-speed internet to customers in more than 60 countries. According to Bloomberg, "SpaceX expects Starlink to generate about $10 billion of overall sales next year, eclipsing its rocket launch business." (More Starlink stories.)