Excerpt: Elon Musk expands SpaceX stake, as IPO plans, AI ambitions, and soaring valuation targets signal unprecedented growth trajectory.
Elon Musk increased his ownership in SpaceX last year by purchasing $1.4 billion worth of shares from current and former employees, according to a report published Tuesday by The Information.
The secondary stock purchase was made through Musk’s trust and disclosed in a draft of SpaceX’s confidential initial public offering (IPO) prospectus, the report said. Reuters could not independently verify the details, and SpaceX did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Separately, SpaceX approved a compensation plan last month that could significantly expand Musk’s holdings. Under the plan, the billionaire CEO would receive an additional 60 million shares if the company’s market capitalization rises from approximately $1.1 trillion to as high as $6.6 trillion.
The shares would vest incrementally as SpaceX’s valuation increases in $500 billion steps, according to the report. The award is also tied to the company achieving an ambitious goal of building space-based data centers designed to provide computing power for artificial intelligence developers.
SpaceX, which confidentially filed for a U.S. listing in March, reported strong financial performance ahead of its anticipated public debut. The company generated roughly $8 billion in profit last year on revenue between $15 billion and $16 billion, Reuters reported earlier.
As part of its IPO plans, SpaceX intends to adopt a dual-class share structure that would consolidate control among Musk and a small group of insiders. Class B shares will carry 10 votes each, while Class A shares—expected to be sold to public investors—will carry one vote apiece.
The structure is commonly used by founder-led companies seeking to maintain strategic control after going public.
The reported share incentives underscore SpaceX’s broader ambitions, including its push into space-based infrastructure to support next-generation technologies such as artificial intelligence.
If realized, the valuation targets outlined in the compensation plan would place SpaceX among the most valuable companies in the world, highlighting investor confidence in both its launch business and future technological ventures.
