News
SpaceX tracks towards first launch of 2019 with flight-proven Falcon 9 static fire
SpaceX has completed a Falcon 9 static fire test ahead of the company’s first launch of 2019, kicking off what is looking to be a truly jam-packed year for Falcon 9 and BFR. Most important, of course, is SpaceX’s primary business and main sources of revenue – safely and reliably launching customer satellites, payloads, and – soon – astronauts into orbit.
Previously tasked with launching heavy communications satellite Telstar 18V in September 2018, Falcon 9 B1049 is now set to launch an arguably historic mission for both SpaceX and customer Iridium, the eighth and final contracted launch of the upgraded Iridium NEXT satellite communications constellation.
Static fire test of Falcon 9 complete. Working with customer to determine best launch opportunity to complete the Iridium NEXT constellation; will announce targeted launch date once confirmed.
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) January 6, 2019
Struck all the way back in June 2010, Iridium’s decision to award the full NEXT constellation launch contract to SpaceX less than two weeks after Falcon 9’s first and only launch may well be the greatest calculated leap of faith in the history of commercial spaceflight. SpaceX did admittedly offer an unbeatable price ($492M for eight launches, $61.5M per launch) that may have allowed Iridium to afford a new constellation in the first place, but the risk Iridium took was truly immense at the time.
Originally launched between 1997 and 1998, the first Iridium constellation became and still remains the only satellite communications constellation in history to offer global and persistent coverage anywhere on Earth, allowing those with Iridium devices to guarantee connectivity no matter where they are. To some extent, the original constellation has become a subtle but omnipresent backbone of a huge variety of ventures, companies, and services, ranging from marine vessel tracking and emergency response to the go-to solution for those heading far off the beaten path. As just one small example, SpaceX’s large fleet of sea-going vessels and its cross-country transport infrastructure both rely on Iridium for streamlined company-wide movement tracking, making life considerably easier for logistics and planning teams.
@SpaceX #falcon9 vertical at SLC-4. Iridium NEXT-8 slated for 01/08 from #VandenbergAFB. #spacex #iridium pic.twitter.com/uJBIgG5Lrp
— Brian Sandoval (@sandovalphotos) January 6, 2019
Iridium’s decision to use SpaceX for its NEXT constellation likely also gave SpaceX a massive stature boost, taking it from the company with just a handful of commercial contracts that had failed three of its last five launches to the company that secured what was at the time the largest single commercial launch contract in history. Alongside NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transport Services (COTS) and Resupply Services (CRS) commitments (~14 launches as of 2010), Iridium NEXT raised SpaceX’s commercial manifest from perhaps 2 missions to ~10 while also taking the value of those contracts from an almost negligible sum to well over half a billion dollars.
Although SpaceX and Iridium originally planned for launches to take place over a roughly 24-month period stretch from 2015 to 2017, unplanned technical delays and a duo of catastrophic Falcon 9 failures (CRS-7 and Amos-6) in 2015 and 2016 ultimately pushed Iridium NEXT’s launch debut back several years. Despite those immense hurdles and a range of smaller issues, SpaceX and Iridium were finally able to begin launching satellites in January 2017 and have continued to consistently do so every 3-4 months since then. Aside from one partial NASA rideshare mission that featured five NEXT satellites in May 2018, all seven launches have placed ten NEXT satellites (weighing approx. 10,000 kg or 22,000 lb total) in a variety of low polar orbits without a single known hitch.
- A rare glimpse inside SpaceX’s SLC-4 rocket integration hangar, January 2017. (SpaceX)
- Iridium-7’s Falcon 9 payload fairing, July 2018. (Pauline Acalin)
- LEO communications satellites like Iridium’s NEXT constellation feature totally flat panels of phased array antennas, capable of forming beams digitally. (Harris)
Falcon 9 enters the era of reusability
Closely following SES, NASA, and SSL (BulgariaSat), Iridium also became the fourth commercial entity to launch on a flight-proven Falcon 9 rocket for the launch vehicle’s fourth flight-proven mission ever. Iridium-8 will become the fourth constellation launch to fly aboard a sooty Falcon 9 rocket, meaning that a full 50% of the next-gen satellites will have launched on reused rockets, easily one of the coolest bragging rights ever. Currently standing at 65 NEXT satellites in orbit and rapidly nearing operational status, Falcon 9 B1049 and a fresh upper stage will (fingers crossed) place the last ten satellites in orbit to complete the constellation’s last plane and seal the last gap in its perfect global coverage.
Although NEXT would have been valuable for the sole reason that its predecessor satellites are now 5-10 years past their designed lifespans, NEXT will also serve to dramatically increase Iridium’s overall bandwidth, slash concurrent user bottlenecks, and provide a platform for new services like Aireon, which hopes to become the first operator of a truly commercial aircraft tracking service with global satellite-based coverage.
- Falcon 9 B1041.2 seen before launching Iridium-5. (Pauline Acalin)
- Iridium-1’s successful and scenic landing on Pacific drone ship JRTI, January 2017. This could be an increasingly rare occurrence in the Pacific, thanks to SpaceX’s new land-based landing zone. (SpaceX)
- 2017 saw SpaceX recovery 10 Falcon 9 first stages, 5 by sea. (SpaceX)
All things considered, it will be hugely bittersweet to watch Iridium and SpaceX’s direct relationship come to a close with the launch of Iridium-8. Aside from nine additional on-orbit spares once all 75 are launched, Iridium will also have a complement of six more spares that will be kept in storage on the ground until they are required in orbit. If or when those times come, SpaceX will be able to compete with other launch providers for the opportunity to carry maybe one or two Iridium satellites – likely as rideshare payloads – into orbit sometime in the future.
Iridium open to rideshares for spare satellite launches https://t.co/ino39oWCHw pic.twitter.com/56PTcaEMW3
— SpaceNews (@SpaceNews_Inc) January 4, 2019
In the meantime, stay tuned for Iridium-8’s official launch time and date, likely to be announced by SpaceX sometime within the next 24-48 hours.
For prompt updates, on-the-ground perspectives, and unique glimpses of SpaceX’s rocket recovery fleet check out our brand new LaunchPad and LandingZone newsletters!
Elon Musk
Tesla CEO Elon Musk drops massive bomb about Cybercab
“And there is so much to this car that is not obvious on the surface,” Musk said.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk dropped a massive bomb about the Cybercab, which is the company’s fully autonomous ride-hailing vehicle that will enter production later this year.
The Cybercab was unveiled back in October 2024 at the company’s “We, Robot” event in Los Angeles, and is among the major catalysts for the company’s growth in the coming years. It is expected to push Tesla into a major growth phase, especially as the automaker is transitioning into more of an AI and Robotics company than anything else.
The Cybercab will enable completely autonomous ride-hailing for Tesla, and although its other vehicles will also be capable of this technology, the Cybercab is slightly different. It will have no steering wheel or pedals, and will allow two occupants to travel from Point A to Point B with zero responsibilities within the car.
Tesla shares epic 2025 recap video, confirms start of Cybercab production
Details on the Cybercab are pretty face value at this point: we know Tesla is enabling 1-2 passengers to ride in it at a time, and this strategy was based on statistics that show most ride-hailing trips have no more than two occupants. It will also have in-vehicle entertainment options accessible from the center touchscreen.
It will also have wireless charging capabilities, which were displayed at “We, Robot,” and there could be more features that will be highly beneficial to riders, offering a full-fledged autonomous experience.
Musk dropped a big hint that there is much more to the Cybercab than what we know, as a post on X said that “there is so much to this car that is not obvious on the surface.”
And there is so much to this car that is not obvious on the surface
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 2, 2026
As the Cybercab is expected to enter production later this year, Tesla is surely going to include a handful of things they have not yet revealed to the public.
Musk seems to be indicating that some of the features will make it even more groundbreaking, and the idea is to enable a truly autonomous experience from start to finish for riders. Everything from climate control to emergency systems, and more, should be included with the car.
It seems more likely than not that Tesla will make the Cybercab its smartest vehicle so far, as if its current lineup is not already extremely intelligent, user-friendly, and intuitive.
Investor's Corner
Tesla Q4 delivery numbers are better than they initially look: analyst
The Deepwater Asset Management Managing Partner shared his thoughts in a post on his website.
Longtime Tesla analyst and Deepwater Asset Management Managing Partner Gene Munster has shared his insights on Tesla’s Q4 2025 deliveries. As per the analyst, Tesla’s numbers are actually better than they first appear.
Munster shared his thoughts in a post on his website.
Normalized December Deliveries
Munster noted that Tesla delivered 418k vehicles in the fourth quarter of 2025, slightly below Street expectations of 420k but above the whisper number of 415k. Tesla’s reported 16% year-over-year decline, compared to +7% in September, is largely distorted by the timing of the tax credit expiration, which pulled forward demand.
“Taking a step back, we believe September deliveries pulled forward approximately 55k units that would have otherwise occurred in December or March. For simplicity, we assume the entire pull-forward impacted the December quarter. Under this assumption, September growth would have been down ~5% absent the 55k pull-forward, a Deepwater estimate tied to the credit’s expiration.
“For December deliveries to have declined ~5% year over year would imply total deliveries of roughly 470k. Subtracting the 55k units pulled into September results in an implied December delivery figure of approximately 415k. The reported 418k suggests that, when normalizing for the tax credit timing, quarter-over-quarter growth has been consistently down ~5%. Importantly, this ~5% decline represents an improvement from the ~13% declines seen in both the March and June 2025 quarters.“
Tesla’s United States market share
Munster also estimated that Q4 as a whole might very well show a notable improvement in Tesla’s market share in the United States.
“Over the past couple of years, based on data from Cox Automotive, Tesla has been losing U.S. EV market share, declining to just under 50%. Based on data for October and November, Cox estimates that total U.S. EV sales were down approximately 35%, compared to Tesla’s just reported down 16% for the full quarter. For the first two months of the quarter, Cox reported Tesla market share of roughly a 65% share, up from under 50% in the September quarter.
“While this data excludes December, the quarter as a whole is likely to show a material improvement in Tesla’s U.S. EV market share.“
Elon Musk
Tesla analyst breaks down delivery report: ‘A step in the right direction’
“This will be viewed as better than feared deliveries and a step in the right direction for the Tesla story heading into 2026,” Ives wrote.
Tesla analyst Dan Ives of Wedbush released a new note on Friday morning just after the company released production and delivery figures for Q4 and the full year of 2025, stating that the numbers, while slightly underwhelming, are “better than feared” and as “a step in the right direction.”
Tesla reported production of 434,358 and deliveries of 418,227 for the fourth quarter, while 1,654,667 vehicles were produced and 1,636,129 cars were delivered for the full year.
Tesla releases Q4 and FY 2025 vehicle delivery and production report
Interestingly, the company posted its own consensus figures that were compiled from various firms on its website a few days ago, where expectations were set at 1,640,752 cars for the year. Tesla fell about 4,000 units short of that. One of the areas where Tesla excelled was energy deployments, which totaled 46.7 GWh for the year.
🚨 Wedbush’s Dan Ives has released a new note on Tesla $TSLA:
“Tesla announced its FY4Q25 delivery numbers this morning coming in at 418.2k vehicles slightly below the company’s consensus delivery estimate of 422.9k but much better than the whisper numbers of ~410k as the…
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) January 2, 2026
In terms of vehicle deliveries, Ives writes that Tesla certainly has some things to work through if it wants to return to growth in that aspect, especially with the loss of the $7,500 tax credit in the U.S. and “continuous headwinds” for the company in Europe.
However, Ives also believes that, given the delivery numbers, which were on par with expectations, Tesla is positioned well for a strong 2026, especially with its AI focus, Robotaxi and Cybercab development, and energy:
“This will be viewed as better than feared deliveries and a step in the right direction for the Tesla story heading into 2026. We look forward to hearing more at the company’s 4Q25 call on January 28th. AI Valuation – The Focus Throughout 2026. We believe Tesla could reach a $2 trillion market cap over the coming year and, in a bull case scenario, $3 trillion by the end of 2026…as full-scale volume production begins with the autonomous and robotics roadmap…The company has started to test the all-important Cybercab in Austin over the past few weeks, which is an incremental step towards launching in 2026 with important volume production of Cybercabs starting in April/May, which remains the golden goose in unlocking TSLA’s AI valuation.”
It’s no secret that for the past several years, Tesla’s vehicle delivery numbers have been the main focus of investors and analysts have looked at them as an indicator of company health to a certain extent. The problem with that narrative in 2025 and 2026 is that Tesla is now focusing more on the deployment of Full Self-Driving, its Optimus project, AI development, and Cybercab.
While vehicle deliveries still hold importance, it is more crucial to note that Tesla’s overall environment as a business relies on much more than just how many cars are purchased. That metric, to a certain extent, is fading in importance in the grand scheme of things, but it will never totally disappear.
Ives and Wedbush maintained their $600 price target and an ‘Outperform’ rating on the stock.





