SpaceX will get off the ground – but a descent from a silly valuation must follow | Nils Pratley

“O ur mission,” says the opening sentence of SpaceX’s listing document with a straight face, “is to build the systems and technologies necessary to make life multi-planetary, to understand the true nature of the universe, and to extend the light of consciousness to the stars.” The last bit has an echo of the laughable WeWork, which was going to “elevate the world’s consciousness” via the medium of shared office spaces. But, yes, if SpaceX could tick off all the items on Elon Musk’s to-do list, one could make a case that the company should be valued at $1.77tn (£1.32tn). Unfortunately, there is the small matter of the here and now. SpaceX made a loss of $4.9bn in 2025 on revenues of $18.7bn, so it is being priced on arrival on the US Nasdaq market at almost 100 times those revenues. That is an other-worldly valuation, even before one starts to estimate the multi-year spending requirements of AI and multi-planetary adventures. Another description would be absurd. SpaceX’s established space technology – as opposed to kit required to build, for example, “a self-sufficient city on Mars” – is market-leading, it should be said. The main attraction is Starlink, which contributes 60% of revenues and has a commanding position in satellite broadband connectivity around the world, especially in remote areas. Starlink is enabled by SpaceX’s rocket-launching abilities. …