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| Science & Technology |
| SpaceX's satellite ambitions squeeze out rivals reliant on its rockets |
| 2026-08-05 |
| [Reuters] SpaceX (SPCX.O), opens new tab is increasingly reserving space on its rockets to launch its own Starlink satellites, crowding out rival space companies that have long depended on Elon Musk's company to get their payloads into ​orbit. Starlink's share of SpaceX missions has grown year after year, rising from 54% of the Falcon 9 rocket's manifest in 2020 to about 79% so far in 2026, according to a Reuters analysis of launch ‌data compiled by astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell. In recent months, at least seven spacecraft companies have been told that Falcon 9 is fully booked for all types of missions until 2028 or 2029, eight sources told Reuters. They added that the bottleneck is driven by SpaceX's plans to transition to the new Starship rocket, designed to be fully reusable and cheaper than Falcon 9. Starlink's growing percentage of SpaceX launches reflects an economic reality. Analysts estimate that a single Starlink mission using Starship could bring in tens of millions of dollars more in revenue for SpaceX than launching a commercial customer's payload ​to space. That calculation is based on the expected returns of adding more satellites to Starlink's network. The unit is critical to SpaceX's success, accounting for 60% of its revenue last year. Even as SpaceX transitions to the Starship rocket, the company's ​NASA obligations and its plans for Starlink are likely to occupy most of its launches. Related: SpaceX 08/03/2026 Quiet skies aren't free SpaceX 07/25/2026 Elon Musk fires back at reporter, claims more people 'hate you and the media than you realize' SpaceX 07/25/2026 Ukrainian Perspective: Invasion of Ukraine: July 24, 2026 |
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