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[Update: old photo, not hardware for a new Falcon Heavy] SpaceX’s next Falcon Heavy launch gets closer to reality
Update: The photo of a Falcon Heavy nosecone posted on Instagram on August 30th was actually more than 12 months old, dating back to early preparations for the rocket’s inaugural February 2018 launch. As such, no new hardware has actually been spied arriving in Florida for Falcon Heavy’s second launch, likely sometime in early 2019.
SpaceX’s second-ever Falcon Heavy rocket appears to be entering into the (very) early stages of hardware preparation and integration in anticipation of its second launch, expected to occur as early as December 2018 or January 2019.
The apparent arrival of one of the new rocket’s side booster nosecones at Kennedy Space Center – captured by local NASA engineer Hampton Black (Instagram: @spacecoast_hampton) – is a strong indicator that SpaceX is already gearing up for the production and launch of the next serial Falcon Heavy, this time composed entirely of upgraded Block 5 boosters.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BnGz9UiHbNl/?taken-by=spacecoast_hampton
Of note, the individual transport of a Falcon Heavy nosecone to Kennedy Space Center bucks the trend observed during the transport of the first rocket’s two side boosters, both of which were shipped to Florida with nosecones already installed. Why might SpaceX be shipping a new Falcon Heavy nosecone to Florida separately, rather than atop a Falcon booster? The most obvious explanation happens to be that SpaceX is planning on reusing a flight-proven Falcon 9 Block 5 booster for Falcon Heavy’s next launch, perhaps even a booster already residing in Florida (B1047, B1049, and potentially B1051).
This should come as no surprise at all, given the inherent disruption any dedicated Falcon Heavy booster production – 3X the effort for one launch – would have on single-booster Falcon 9 manufacturing. Thanks to the extraordinary loads placed on FH center boosters, those will likely need to have a separate design dedicated to Falcon Heavy, but statements from CEO Elon Musk after the rocket’s successful February 2018 debut indicate that Falcon 9 Block 5 boosters will be interchangeable as side booster with minimal rework.
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- Falcon Heavy’s refurbished side core, spotted 8/21/17 in Louisiana by an observant fan. (reddit /u/neauxgeaux)
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- One of Falcon Heavy’s side boosters seen arriving at LC-39A about a month ago. (Reddit /u/MajorRocketScience)
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- A Falcon Heavy side booster and its nosecone. (Tom Cross)
Inter-booster connection hardware will certainly need to be installed on the outside of any Falcon Heavy-focused Falcon 9 booster, but the only other major hardware modification apparently needed would be the replacement of a booster’s Falcon 9 interstage (wrapped in a black heat-resistant material on Block 5 vehicles) with a Falcon Heavy nosecone.
This is likely why a lone nosecone has been transported to the Cape – it might seem rather premature with Falcon Heavy’s next launch potentially five or more months away, but it’s likely that SpaceX integration engineers and technicians want to physically verify that new procedures work as expect and that the new hardware fit meets SpaceX’s tolerances. Normally, the vast majority of that final integration and verification work would be conducted in situ at the company’s Hawthorne factory, where the Falcon 9 or Heavy booster simply would not ship to McGregor or a launch pad until everything checked out as expected.
It’s entirely possible that this very booster – Falcon 9 B1046 – could be modified for duty as a Falcon Heavy side booster in the near future. August 2018. (Tom Cross)
Rather than shipping a flight-proven Block 5 booster back to Hawthorne or McGregor, SpaceX might instead be able to much more easily ship just the components that need to be swapped out in order to modify a Falcon 9 booster for Falcon Heavy side core duties. If that can, in fact, be done, it should serve to dramatically lower the previously massive work-hour gaps between Falcon Heavy and Falcon 9 launches, potentially making Heavy a much more viable and workhorse-esque rocket for SpaceX and the company’s present and prospective customers.
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In a groundbreaking new report from Reuters, SpaceX is reportedly discussing merger possibilities with xAI ahead of the space exploration company’s plans to IPO later this year, in what would be a blockbuster move.
The outlet said it would combine rockets and Starlink satellites, as well as the X social media platform and AI project Grok under one roof. The report cites “a person briefed on the matter and two recent company filings seen by Reuters.”
Musk, nor SpaceX or xAI, have commented on the report, so, as of now, it is unconfirmed.
With that being said, the proposed merger would bring shares of xAI in exchange for shares of SpaceX. Both companies were registered in Nevada to expedite the transaction, according to the report.
On January 21, both entities were registered in Nevada. The report continues:
“One of them, a limited liability company, lists SpaceX and Bret Johnsen, the company’s chief financial officer, as managing members, while the other lists Johnsen as the company’s only officer, the filings show.”
The source also stated that some xAI executives could be given the option to receive cash in lieu of SpaceX stock. No agreement has been reached, nothing has been signed, and the timing and structure, as well as other important details, have not been finalized.
SpaceX is valued at $800 billion and is the most valuable privately held company, while xAI is valued at $230 billion as of November. SpaceX could be going public later this year, as Musk has said as recently as December that the company would offer its stock publicly.
The plans could help move along plans for large-scale data centers in space, something Musk has discussed on several occasions over the past few months.
At the World Economic Forum last week, Musk said:
“It’s a no-brainer for building solar-powered AI data centers in space, because as I mentioned, it’s also very cold in space. The net effect is that the lowest cost place to put AI will be space and that will be true within two to three years, three at the latest.”
He also said on X that “the most important thing in the next 3-4 years is data centers in space.”
If the report is true and the two companies end up coming together, it would not be the first time Musk’s companies have ended up coming together. He used Tesla stock to purchase SolarCity back in 2016. Last year, X became part of xAI in a share swap.
Tesla has announced it has hit a major milestone with Full Self-Driving subscriptions, shortly after it said it would exclusively offer the suite without the option to purchase it outright.
Tesla announced on Wednesday during its Q4 Earnings Call for 2025 that it had officially eclipsed the one million subscription mark for its Full Self-Driving suite. This represented a 38 percent increase year-over-year.
This is up from the roughly 800,000 active subscriptions it reported last year. The company has seen significant increases in FSD adoption over the past few years, as in 2021, it reported just 400,000. In 2022, it was up to 500,000 and, one year later, it had eclipsed 600,000.
NEWS: For the first time, Tesla has revealed how many people are subscribed or have purchased FSD (Supervised).
Active FSD Subscriptions:
• 2025: 1.1 million
• 2024: 800K
• 2023: 600K
• 2022: 500K
• 2021: 400K pic.twitter.com/KVtnyANWcs— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) January 28, 2026
In mid-January, CEO Elon Musk announced that the company would transition away from giving the option to purchase the Full Self-Driving suite outright, opting for the subscription program exclusively.
Musk said on X:
“Tesla will stop selling FSD after Feb 14. FSD will only be available as a monthly subscription thereafter.”
The move intends to streamline the Full Self-Driving purchase option, and gives Tesla more control over its revenue, and closes off the ability to buy it outright for a bargain when Musk has said its value could be close to $100,000 when it reaches full autonomy.
It also caters to Musk’s newest compensation package. One tranche requires Tesla to achieve 10 million active FSD subscriptions, and now that it has reached one million, it is already seeing some growth.
The strategy that Tesla will use to achieve this lofty goal is still under wraps. The most ideal solution would be to offer a less expensive version of the suite, which is not likely considering the company is increasing its capabilities, and it is becoming more robust.
Tesla is shifting FSD to a subscription-only model, confirms Elon Musk
Currently, Tesla’s FSD subscription price is $99 per month, but Musk said this price will increase, which seems counterintuitive to its goal of increasing the take rate. With that being said, it will be interesting to see what Tesla does to navigate growth while offering a robust FSD suite.
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Tesla confirms Robotaxi expansion plans with new cities and aggressive timeline
Tesla plans to launch in Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Orlando, Tampa, and Las Vegas. It lists the Bay Area as “Safety Driver,” and Austin as “Ramping Unsupervised.”
Tesla confirmed its intentions to expand the Robotaxi program in the United States with an aggressive timeline that aims to send the ride-hailing service to several large cities very soon.
The Robotaxi program is currently active in Austin, Texas, and the California Bay Area, but Tesla has received some approvals for testing in other areas of the U.S., although it has not launched in those areas quite yet.
However, the time is coming.
During Tesla’s Q4 Earnings Call last night, the company confirmed that it plans to expand the Robotaxi program aggressively, hoping to launch in seven new cities in the first half of the year.
Tesla plans to launch in Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Orlando, Tampa, and Las Vegas. It lists the Bay Area as “Safety Driver,” and Austin as “Ramping Unsupervised.”
These details were released in the Earnings Shareholder Deck, which is published shortly before the Earnings Call:
🚨 BREAKING: Tesla plans to launch its Robotaxi service in Dallas, Houston, Phoenix, Miami, Orlando, Tampa, and Las Vegas in the first half of this year pic.twitter.com/aTnruz818v
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) January 28, 2026
Late last year, Tesla revealed it had planned to launch Robotaxi in Las Vegas, Phoenix, Dallas, and Houston, but Tampa and Orlando were just added to the plans, signaling an even more aggressive expansion than originally planned.
Tesla feels extremely confident in its Robotaxi program, and that has been reiterated many times.
Although skeptics still remain hesitant to believe the prowess Tesla has seemingly proven in its development of an autonomous driving suite, the company has been operating a successful program in Austin and the Bay Area for months.
In fact, it announced it achieved nearly 700,000 paid Robotaxi miles since launching Robotaxi last June.
🚨 Tesla has achieved nearly 700,000 paid Robotaxi miles since launching in June of last year pic.twitter.com/E8ldSW36La
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) January 28, 2026
With the expansion, Tesla will be able to penetrate more of the ride-sharing market, disrupting the human-operated platforms like Uber and Lyft, which are usually more expensive and are dependent on availability.
Tesla launched driverless rides in Austin last week, but they’ve been few and far between, as the company is certainly easing into the program with a very cautiously optimistic attitude, aiming to prioritize safety.
SpaceX reportedly discussing merger with xAI ahead of blockbuster IPO
Tesla hits major milestone with Full Self-Driving subscriptions
