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SpaceX adds a second drone ship to its East Coast rocket recovery fleet
On December 10th, SpaceX’s East Coast rocket recovery fleet added a second drone ship to its ranks in a bid to expand its capabilities to support dozens of annual Falcon 9 and Heavy launches, as well as experimental Starship and Super Heavy booster recoveries.
Formerly stationed out of Port of Los Angeles to support SpaceX’s once-substantial West Coast launch manifest, the need for West Coast launches has rapidly dried up over the last six months. That drought had such a long lead that SpaceX decided to transfer drone ship Just Read The Instructions (JRTI) through the Panama Canal, moving the vessel several thousand miles from Port of Los Angeles to Port Canaveral, Florida.
JRTI made it through the Canal several months ago and headed East towards Florida before making an intriguing and lengthy pit stop in a Louisiana port. While there, marine engineers and technicians performed a number of unknown tasks presumed to be a scheduled period of inspections and maintenance. In the last few weeks JRTI spent in Louisiana, SpaceX loaded the drone ship with more than a dozen huge generators and power controllers, as well as six massive maneuvering thrusters.
Although perspectives were lacking while JRTI was docked in LA, it was clear that some (or all) of the new hardware was meant for the drone ship, indicating that the rocket recovery platform could be in for some major upgrades. The aforementioned thrusters are much larger and appear to be heavier than JRTI’s former blue azimuth thrusters, four of which also adorn Florida-based drone ship Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY).
Those massive thrusters are presumably meant for JRTI (and possibly OCISLY). The fact that they have been delivered alongside an even larger number of generators – far more than are usually present on SpaceX drone ships – indicates that their power output is probably larger, too. It’s not clear how much more powerful they are but one goal is unequivocal: with more powerful thrusters, SpaceX’s drone ships should be much more tolerant of bad weather, meaning that SpaceX will be able to launch Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy, and Starship without having to worry as much about the weather hundreds of miles downrange.
Depending on how powerful they are, it’s also possible that those upgraded thrusters are strong enough to independently power drone ships to and from their ocean landing zones. As of now, SpaceX must contract days of tugboat services to tow drone ships to and from their landing zones, by far one of the biggest recurring costs for booster recoveries. If a major power supply upgrade and much larger thrusters are indeed enough to enable independent cruise capabilities, it could significantly streamline SpaceX’s drone ship recovery efforts, cutting costs and increasing flexibility and availability.
It’s hard to say why drone ship JRTI only brought six new thrusters with it, given that SpaceX’s East Coast fleet now has two drone ships and four thrusters are needed to enable stationkeeping on just one of them. Perhaps two more thrusters are on backorder and will be delivered directly to Port Canaveral. More likely, only one drone ship – likely JRTI – will initially be upgraded with new thrusters and power equipment, leaving two spare thrusters in case those installed are damaged by recovery attempts or fail for more mundane reasons.
In the past, drone ship OCISLY has suffered a handful of recovery anomalies that forced SpaceX to replace the vessel’s blue azimuth thrusters and their associated hydraulic equipment. In some cases, a lack of replacement thrusters lead SpaceX to scavenge drone ship JRTI, leaving the ship without thrusters for several months. With these latest upgrades, SpaceX has presumably learned from those past mistakes and ensured that several spare generators and thrusters are on hand.
Given that SpaceX has yet to install those upgraded thrusters or generators on either JRTI or OCISLY, as well as the general uncertainty surrounding their purpose, it’s safe to say that the next several weeks will be exciting. For now, it’s unknown when JRTI will be ready to support its first East Coast rocket recovery, but there will be plenty of launches to choose from once she is.
With two drone ships now stationed out of Port Canaveral, SpaceX will be able to support a more capable Falcon Heavy configuration, expending the center core while recovering both side boosters at sea. SpaceX will also be able to attempt experimental Starship and Super Heavy drone ship landings while still having a spare ship to support its regular Falcon 9 missions. Most importantly, two drone ships will allow SpaceX to reach launch/landing cadences and turnaround times previously impossible with a single ship, an absolute necessity if the company hopes to achieve its goal of ~24 Starlink launches on top of 10+ commercial launches in 2020.
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Tesla has evidently revealed which of its vehicle models will be the first to receive Starlink integration: the Cybercab.
Tesla’s Santana Row showroom now has a full-fledged display of the Cybercab, with an extensive bit of information hung around an exhibit that seems to reveal the vehicle’s newest feature: an integrated Starlink antenna that will enable secure and reliable internet access during trips.
Credit: @Starscream_SJC | X
Cybercab is geared toward autonomous ride-hailing for one or two passengers. The production units rolling off the lines at Gigafactory Texas are built without steering wheels or pedals, meaning when public rides begin, passengers will not need to interact with a human being or control the vehicle in any way outside of what appears on the center screen for their entertainment during the ride.
Tesla Santana Row will be reopening tomorrow with a full focus on self-driving. Everything in the showroom is about Robotaxi and Cybercab with stats and information about the technology. The Cybercab on display is the production model. pic.twitter.com/yIUYdOGFOp
— Shaun Cassidy (@Starscream_SJC) July 20, 2026
Along the display, Tesla wrote this message about Cybercab:
“Cybercab is built for autonomy. It has no steering wheel, no side mirrors, and no pedals. It goes where you tell it to go and how you want it to, so you can relax along the way. It is hyper aware and responsive to your surroundings, monitoring other drivers, responding to emergency vehicles, utilizing its expertise in the rarest scenarios to help keep you safe.”
Tesla has been teasing a potential Starlink integration for quite some time now. In December, the company hinted at potential Starlink internet terminal integration within its vehicles in a patent that described a vehicle roof assembly with integrated radio frequency (RF) transparency.
The company wrote in its patent application that a new roof design built with materials that differ from the standard metallic or glass elements used in today’s cars would allow it to integrate modern vehicular technologies, in particular, ones that require radio frequency transmission and reception.
Tesla suggested high-strength polymer blends, like Polycarbonate, Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene, or Acrylonitrile Styrene Acrylate.
This is the first time we’ve seen Tesla officially confirm the Starlink integration into the Cybercab. It’s not much of a surprise considering the company’s intention behind the Cybercab, which is to make travel autonomous.
Productivity will now be at a maximum during a work-related commute, while the center screen could be utilized for Netflix or potentially even live TV for those who are heading to dinner or to a fun activity.
SpaceX has updated its target for the thirteenth integrated flight test of Starship, aiming for as early as Thursday, July 23. The 90-minute launch window opens at 5:45 p.m. CT from the company’s Starbase facility in South Texas.
The target flight was initially rescheduled for today, but SpaceX pushed it back again.
This latest adjustment follows an aborted attempt earlier in the week and reflects the iterative, rapid-development approach that has defined the Starship program. With the vehicle already stacked and ground teams making final preparations, the mission represents another step toward proving the full reusability of the world’s most powerful rocket system.
Now targeting to launch Starship’s thirteenth flight test as early as Thursday, July 23 → https://t.co/Rp7VwBzpWx pic.twitter.com/Y0YNzfc5zk
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 19, 2026
The original launch attempt on July 16 was scrubbed at T-0 when several Raptor engines on the Super Heavy booster failed to ignite properly. The automatic abort system triggered just as the engines began their startup sequence, preventing liftoff.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk confirmed that some engines did not start as expected, prompting the decision to replace two Raptors on Booster 20 to ensure reliability. The issue occurred despite a successful full-duration static fire earlier, highlighting the complexities of coordinating 33 engines under flight conditions.
This cautious approach underscores SpaceX’s commitment to safety amid an aggressive test cadence.
Flight 13 builds directly on the lessons from Flight 12 in May 2026. The Super Heavy booster’s primary goals include a successful liftoff, ascent, stage separation, boostback burn, and controlled splashdown in the Gulf of America.
Hardware and software modifications address the off-nominal flip and boostback burn problems from the prior flight, where propellant slosh and engine relight issues led to an uncontrolled impact.
For the Starship upper stage, objectives include deploying 20 operational Starlink V3 satellites, the first real payload of this type, performing a single Raptor engine relight in space, and executing a controlled entry, descent, and splashdown in the Indian Ocean. Propulsion upgrades aim to improve engine-out capability after one vacuum Raptor was lost on Flight 12.
Additional test elements focus on heat shield performance. Six satellites carry cameras to image the tiles during flight, while white-painted tiles and upgraded attachments on flaps and the aft skirt will gather data for future reusability.
The FAA completed its mishap investigation into Flight 12 earlier this month, clearing the regulatory path.
This suborbital mission, the second with V3 vehicles, advances Starship toward operational missions, including potential crewed flights and support for NASA’s Artemis program. Success would mark significant progress in rapid reusability and satellite deployment from the massive system.
Elon Musk dismissed reports claiming SpaceX had placed a massive order for NVIDIA GPUs worth $52 billion. The denial came hours after Taiwanese media, citing unnamed industry sources, reported that SpaceX planned to acquire approximately 13,000 AI server racks, equating to roughly 1 million GB300 GPUs, from Foxconn.
Each rack was estimated at around $4 million, with deliveries potentially starting in late 2025.
The story suggested this would mark SpaceX’s first major foray into Foxconn-manufactured NVIDIA hardware, breaking from suppliers like Supermicro and Dell. Musk responded bluntly on X:
This is fake news
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 20, 2026
Despite the denial, the rumored scale aligns with SpaceX’s explosive growth in AI infrastructure. NVIDIA’s GB300 (successor to the GB200 NVL) racks deliver unprecedented performance for large-scale training and inference. A $52 billion commitment would dwarf most corporate AI budgets and provide the compute muscle needed for frontier models.
SpaceX already operates gigawatt-scale terrestrial clusters like Colossus in Memphis, Tennessee, and has monetized them aggressively through leasing deals.
SpaceX’s newest Starmind will make earth data centers obsolete
Major customers include Anthropic (paying ~$1.25 billion monthly for 220,000+ GPUs), Google (~$920 million monthly for 110,000 GPUs), and Reflection AI. These arrangements are projected to generate tens of billions in annual revenue, far outpacing traditional SpaceX businesses.
Such an investment would fuel internal AI efforts, particularly Grok models under the integrated SpaceXAI division, while supporting ambitious orbital data center plans. SpaceX envisions launching thousands of AI-optimized satellites powered by solar energy and cooled in space, bypassing terrestrial power and land constraints.
This “Starmind” constellation could position the company as a leader in space-based computing.
SpaceX as an Emerging AI Powerhouse
Once primarily known for reusable rockets and Starlink satellite internet, SpaceX has transformed into a multifaceted AI player.
The 2026 acquisition of xAI integrated Grok development directly into the company. Starlink’s low-latency global network complements massive compute clusters, enabling efficient data flow for training and serving AI models.
Musk has long argued that AI scaling demands solutions beyond Earth, citing things like real estate and electricity limits on the ground.
While the Foxconn deal may not be in the cards, SpaceX’s trajectory is continuing on the path of blending aerospace engineering with hyperscale AI to dominate both launches and intelligence infrastructure.
Tesla reveals first vehicle model to receive Starlink integration
SpaceX adjusts Starship Flight 13 test launch target date once again
