SpaceX reports Starlink and data-center leasing drive revenue, not space launches

SpaceX’s first quarterly earnings as a public company indicate that its revenue is now dominated by Starlink and data-center leasing, not space launches. Rockets contributed just over 10% of total revenue, while Starlink generated $4.2 billion and was the only segment with operating profits. The company’s data-center leasing business, which rents capacity to AI companies, spent $15.8 billion in the second quarter alone—far exceeding spending on rockets or connectivity. Analyst Alexander Potter estimates the data-center leasing business could reach $65 billion in spending next year, up from a prior estimate of $48 billion.

The shift reflects SpaceX’s pivot toward AI infrastructure. The company now counts Google, Anthropic, Reflection AI, and Cursor among its data-center customers. On the earnings call, SpaceX CFO Bret Johnsen said these deals put the company “on a trajectory, including contribution from Cursor, to reach $100 billion of annualized revenue run rate.” Elon Musk added that the $100 billion ARR figure for December was not a question mark and could be higher.

However, the company faces challenges. Compute is a commodity market where pricing pressure is expected as supply increases. SpaceX’s data centers also struggled with operational bottlenecks, including chip mix mismatches and latency issues that initially hindered in-house AI model training. Musk acknowledged that only 10% of SpaceX’s built compute capacity will go to xAI’s Grok, with the rest leased to third parties.

The earnings underscore a broader industry trend: AI demand is reshaping infrastructure priorities. SpaceX’s Starlink and data-center segments now drive the majority of its financial performance, while its traditional space business plays a supporting role.