Overview
- SpaceX confirmed it has acquired xAI and outlined a strategy to build space-based data centers that link AI development with launch, satellites and social-data assets.
- An FCC filing requests authorization for up to one million low-Earth-orbit satellites powered by solar energy and interconnected by lasers to serve as orbital data-center nodes.
- Investor communications and media reports cite a combined valuation near $1.25 trillion, a proposed share price around $526–$527 and an approximate seven-to-one conversion of xAI shares into SpaceX shares ahead of a planned IPO this year.
- SpaceX says Starship will enable scale, targeting high-cadence flights carrying up to 200 tons per launch to deploy large constellations and next-generation Starlink hardware.
- Scientists and regulators are raising concerns about debris, collision risk and astronomy impacts, and xAI’s Grok faces investigations over harmful content, adding governance scrutiny to the merged company.