SpaceX began trading publicly on June 12, 2026, in the largest initial public offering (IPO) in history, sending the rocket and satellite company’s stock sharply higher and making Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire, on paper at least.
Shares of Space Exploration Technologies Corp. opened on the Nasdaq under the ticker SPCX after the company priced its stock at $135 per share. The stock opened at $150 and climbed as high as about $176 in early trading, giving SpaceX a market value of more than $2 trillion.
The public listing marks a major shift for a company that has spent more than two decades operating largely on its own terms as a private aerospace company.
The IPO raised about $75 billion for SpaceX, money the company has said it plans to use to fund its next stage of growth. That includes Starship, expanded launch infrastructure, larger satellite constellations and new AI compute infrastructure.
Starship is sure to be a central focus for investors in the rocket company as it still needs to mature into a fully reusable heavy-lift launch system. Starlink also must keep expanding while facing growing competition and regulatory pressure around the world. Meanwhile, it has to continue delivering for NASA, the US military and commercial customers, all while pursuing its longer-term Mars ambitions.
For employees, the IPO turns years of private stock awards into something they will be able to turn into real money in their pockets. Thousands of current and former SpaceX workers are expected to realize major gains from equity accumulated while the company was private.
SpaceX’s offering documents include lock-up periods and staggered release dates that limit when insiders can sell shares, meaning employees won’t get rich overnight. But the IPO still creates investment liquidity for a workforce that has helped build the company through years of demanding launch, manufacturing and satellite-network growth.
SpaceX has long competed for engineering, manufacturing and operations talent with traditional defense primes, launch providers, satellite companies and newer space startups. A successful public listing gives SpaceX another recruiting tool, but it could also tempt some longtime employees to cash out, start companies of their own or move into investing.
SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell has pushed back on the idea that the IPO will trigger a major wave of departures, saying many employees who have built wealth at the company remain committed to the mission.
For Musk, the IPO raises an already extraordinary personal fortune into the stratosphere and beyond. His SpaceX stake, combined with holdings in Tesla and other companies, lifted his estimated net worth above $1 trillion as SpaceX shares rose in their first day of trading.