Elon Musk's SpaceX is seeking an IPO at a $1.78 trillion valuation, marking not only a historic moment for the capital markets but also potentially a windfall for Trump administration officials.
On Wednesday, SpaceX, the aerospace and artificial intelligence company led by Elon Musk, filed an amended IPO prospectus planning to issue 555.6 million shares at $135 per share, raising approximately $75 billion; if the underwriters exercise their greenshoe option, the offering could expand to $86 billion, valuing the company at $1.78 trillion. This would make it one of the largest initial public offerings in history.
The funds are clearly allocated across multiple areas, with the primary focus on expanding artificial intelligence infrastructure, followed by the development of aerospace launch vehicles and the Starlink satellite network. Meanwhile, the company must utilize a portion of the raised funds within six months to repay a $20 billion bridge loan provided by underwriting banks in March this year, which was originally used to restructure debt related to its social media and artificial intelligence businesses, X and xAI.
Although the company has not yet turned a profit, its price-to-sales ratio reaches 92 times based on this pricing, significantly higher than most large technology companies. In its prospectus, the company emphasizes that artificial intelligence will be its largest potential market, while also presenting investors with a longer-term vision, including orbital AI data centers, asteroid mining, and future passenger services to the Moon and Mars.
The prospectus states: “By surpassing our only home to date, we ensure redundancy at the species level and guarantee that the light of consciousness is not confined to a single planet.” The document also notes that investors have extremely limited influence over corporate governance. Musk holds approximately 82% of the voting power through his ownership of nearly all Class B shares with super-voting rights and maintains effective control over the removal of the chairman or CEO.
This governance structure has raised concerns among some large institutional investors. Last month, the heads of the New York State Common Retirement Fund and the California Public Employees’ Retirement System sent a letter to the company’s executives, expressing “serious concern” over its “novel and extreme governance structure” and Musk’s “lack of accountability mechanisms.” Since these funds track major stock indices, they will be required to passively purchase SpaceX shares if the company is added to those indices.
The company plans to launch its IPO roadshow on Thursday, during which Wall Street investment bank analysts will present financial projections to potential investors. This listing comes at a time when tech companies are increasing their investments in artificial intelligence: Alphabet has begun raising $85 billion in equity funding, Anthropic has disclosed that it has secretly filed for an IPO, and OpenAI is expected to advance similar plans.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, at this offering price, Musk’s net worth would be approximately $988 billion, just one step away from becoming the world’s first trillionaire. However, given that shares may be sold at a higher price and IPOs typically rise on their first day of trading, he is expected to reach this milestone by late next week, when the shares are anticipated to begin trading.
SpaceX's IPO is expected to further increase the wealth of Trump's team.
SpaceX's IPO has drawn attention not only due to its scale but also because of its close ties with the U.S. government. The company is a major federal contractor, having completed approximately $4 billion in government contracts in fiscal year 2025, and recently secured two new contracts from the U.S. Space Force totaling $6.5 billion for satellite communications and airborne threat monitoring.
Meanwhile, publicly filed financial disclosure documents show that 10 Trump administration officials, including envoy Steve Witkoff and Small Business Administration head Kelly Loeffler, hold financial interests in SpaceX or its merged entity xAI. Based on the valuation ranges disclosed last year, the total value of these holdings ranges between $9.9 million and $43.8 million; due to less stringent disclosure requirements for private company equity transactions, it remains unclear whether these positions have changed since then.
Witkoff indirectly holds SpaceX assets through 3G Investors LLC, with a reported value between $1 million and $5 million; Loeffler invested in xAI through the Valor Equity Partners fund, which was founded by Antonio Gracias, a long-time partner of Musk. Public records show that Valor is one of SpaceX’s major shareholders besides Musk.
In more cases, the connections between officials and companies are more direct. Paul McInerny, a former SpaceX engineer and current Chief Information Officer of the Department of the Interior, holds shares in a company valued between $5 million and $25 million and has received a道德 waiver to participate in work involving broad policy issues. The Department of the Interior states that he will recuse himself from all matters directly related to his personal financial interests.
Michael Lynch, Deputy Administrator of the U.S. General Services Administration, holds between $500,000 and $1 million in SpaceX shares; Ambassador Stacey Feinberg, stationed in Luxembourg, holds an interest in xAI through a fund. The State Department responded that officials, including ambassadors, are required to comply with relevant disclosure and legal obligations.
Columbia Law School professor Reilly Steel noted, “I can’t think of another IPO in recent years where so many senior government officials held financial interests.”
Caleb Burns of the law firm Wiley Rein LLP also said: “This is the largest public offering ever, led by the president’s former close ally… historically, there is no precedent.”
In some cases, regulatory requirements have triggered specific divestments. The newly appointed Fed Chair Walsh previously held exposure to SpaceX through a fund associated with Stan Druckenmiller and committed in his ethics filing to complete the divestment before assuming office.
Discussions regarding conflicts of interest also involve specific administrative functions. The Department of the Interior, as a key federal agency responsible for land management, environmental approvals, and infrastructure oversight, has multiple points of interaction with SpaceX: the National Park System utilizes Starlink services, and the company has previously applied to construct infrastructure near wildlife reserves.
According to disclosure filings, McKinney sold a portion of his SpaceX shares in 2024 and 2025, realizing profits between $1 million and $5 million. He explained to ethics officials that fully exiting his holdings was operationally challenging, as the timing and scale of share sales are controlled by the company while it remains private.
Scott Amey, General Counsel of the Government Oversight Project, said: “This may be legal, but it’s not best practice. It requires daily oversight. Best practice would be to exit entirely to eliminate even the appearance of a conflict of interest.”