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SpaceX’s third Starlink launch in three weeks is just around the corner
SpaceX is just a few days away from Falcon 9’s third Starlink internet satellite launch in 22 days, also the second commercial Starlink rideshare mission in two weeks.
If successfully, Starlink v1.0 L9 mission will mark nearly six hundred internet satellites launched by SpaceX since the company began dedicated missions in May 2019, as well as ~530 operational v1.0 spacecraft launched since November 2019. According to SpaceX executives, the company can begin rolling out internet service to customers via “UFO on a stick” user terminals once 14 v1.0 launches have been completed, meaning that the constellation could be just five launches away from generating consistent revenue after the next batch of satellites are safely in orbit.
Meanwhile, SpaceX debuted a separate method of generating revenue from Starlink launches just ten days ago when it successfully launched three Planet imaging satellites on top of 58 new Starlink spacecraft. While the revenue from booking a few satellites to launch on Starlink missions is likely nowhere close to covering the actual material cost to SpaceX, it can certainly help offset the extraordinarily capital-intensive process of constellation build-out. Less than two weeks after SpaceX’s Starlink rideshare debut, the very next launch is scheduled to include two commercial imaging satellites – this time for BlackSky Global.
Built by Washington startup LeoStella, the two imaging satellites scheduled to launch on Starlink-9 arrived in Cape Canaveral, Florida on June 1st in time to be processed and installed on top of a stack of either 58 or 60 Starlink internet satellites.
Approximately half as large as the three ~110 kg (240 lb) SkySats SpaceX launched on June 13th, LeoStella’s first two BlackSky satellites are believed to weigh around 55 kg (~120 lb) each and are capable of imaging the Earth’s surface at a resolution of ~1m per pixel from a nominal 500 km (310 mi) orbit. BlackSky’s LeoStella contract includes another 18 such satellites, all of which could (but probably wont) launch on future Starlink missions.
Smallsat constellation operators typically aim for diversity when launching more than a handful of satellites, ensuring that a hypothetical launch vehicle failure wont delay or destroy an entire constellation. Still, according to competitor Planet, SpaceX’s rideshare pricing is so good that it has actively changed how the prolific satellite operator thinks about constellation expansion. Planet, for reference, managed to launch three SkySats – weighing ~330 kg (~730 lb) – for something like $3 million, at least 5-7 times cheaper than launching the same spacecraft on three dedicated Rocket Lab Electron rockets.
Supporting Planet’s high praise, SpaceX recently announced that it had already secured launch contracts for more than 100 small satellites less than ten months after the program debuted, potentially injecting an impressive $50 to $100 million in revenue. A large portion of those satellites are likely scheduled to launch on one of SpaceX’s dedicated semi-annual rideshare missions, the first of which is aiming to launch in December 2020, but at least one or several dozen are probably manifested on Starlink launches.
According to CEO Elon Musk, the ultimate cost of a flight-proven Falcon 9 launch can be as low as $15 million – excluding overhead but including a new upper stage, booster recovery, propellant, and other miscellaneous costs. As such, a single 60-satellite Starlink launch likely costs SpaceX less than $30 million total, meaning that an average of five small satellites (base price: $1 million per slot) manifested on a Starlink launch would save SpaceX ~17% every time.
Regardless, Falcon 9 booster B1051 is scheduled to become the third SpaceX rocket to launch five times when it lifts off for Starlink-9 no earlier than (NET) 4:39 pm EDT (20:39 UTC) on June 25th, a delay of three days from the original June 22nd target.
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Tesla’s dreams of operating a fully autonomous ride-hailing platform just took a massive step toward reality, as two separate events have indicated the company is perhaps closer than ever to achieving self-driving as a product.
On Thursday, Tesla was granted authorization by the State of Texas to operate driverless vehicles in a commercial manner. On May 28, Senate Bill 2807, passed by the 89th Texas Legislature, took effect after being passed back on September 1, 2025.
The bill establishes a statewide regulatory framework requiring authorization from the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles for companies to operate automated vehicles commercially on Texas roads.
This covers driverless, or SAE Level 4+, operations for passenger transport, meaning Robotaxi, or freight.
Tesla and other companies can self-certify their vehicles and tech as long as they:
- Operate in compliance with Texas traffic laws
- Maintain proper registration, title, and insurance
- Use compliant automated driving systems
- Record onboard activity and handle system failures and glitches safely.
The new authorization, which was first reported by James Stephenson on X, allows companies to utilize their own processes to determine if their vehicles are ready to operate without drivers.
🚨BREAKING:
Tesla has been authorized by the State of Texas to operate driverless vehicles commercially under the new law that took effect today, May 28th, 2026. Tesla has officially self-certified the software running on its robotaxis as Level 4. $TSLA pic.twitter.com/KSJdsvlaW5— James Stephenson (@ICannot_Enough) May 28, 2026
It is a rule that expedites the entire approval process, keeping agencies out of a usually long, lengthy, and frustrating task that is essential to technological advancements. It essentially means Tesla can launch commercial Robotaxi operations at this point.
On the very same day, Tesla continued the momentum as CEO Elon Musk shared a video of Cybercab units autonomously driving off the property at Gigafactory Texas. This is a major step in the story of the Cybercab.
Mass production of the Cybercab started at Giga Texas in April, and it is already heading out of the factory on its own.
Cybercab driving itself out of the GigaTexas factory pic.twitter.com/EwAMVVDjYy
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 28, 2026
These two major events mark a drastic step forward in Tesla’s progress toward Cybercab and the permissions it needs to operate a self-driving ride-hailing service. Tesla is now able to operate autonomously under Texas law by self-certifying, and with the potentially imminent rollout of Cybercab, Tesla’s autonomous dreams are starting to take serious shape.
Elon Musk
The Tesla and SpaceX merger everyone is talking about is quietly building
Tesla and SpaceX may be closer to merging than Wall Street or either company is admitting.
Elon Musk has reportedly discussed merging Tesla and SpaceX with people close to him, according to CNBC, which cited sources familiar with the conversation. Tesla employees have long expected such a transaction and the topic is openly discussed internally, according to internal sources. With SpaceX is days away from kicking off its Wall Street roadshow for what could be the largest IPO in market history, this would be the first time the company will have public market currency to execute a stock-for-stock deal with Tesla.
The financial logic for a merger would make sense. A combined SpaceX and Tesla would create a conglomerate spanning rockets, satellites, electric vehicles, AI infrastructure, and energy storage valued at roughly $3.35 trillion to $3.6 trillion based on SpaceX’s IPO target range and Tesla’s current market capitalization. The two companies are already more intertwined than most people realize. SpaceX bought $697 million worth of Tesla Megapack systems for xAI data centers and $131 million worth of Cybertrucks. Tesla invested $2 billion in xAI, which subsequently merged with SpaceX. Past transactions also include Tesla selling solar equipment and parts to SpaceX, and SpaceX helping with Cybertruck materials.
Will Tesla join the fold? Predicting a triple merger with SpaceX and xAI
Musk himself signaled where this was heading in November 2025 when he posted on X, “My companies are, surprisingly in some ways, trending towards convergence.” Tesla and SpaceX announced a joint semiconductor fabrication facility in Austin called Terafab on the Gigafactory Texas campus, covering two advanced chip factories, with one serving Tesla’s AI needs for vehicles and Optimus robots, the other targeting space-based data centers under SpaceX’s infrastructure vision.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives places the probability of a merger at 80% to 90% with a target completion in the first half of 2027. The mechanics of a deal became possible the moment SpaceX filed its S-1. Legal experts said a merger likely would not spark antitrust issues but would raise concerns among shareholders in each company, with questions around which company would be the parent, how a stock swap would take place, and who determines the appropriate price. Musk holds about 20% of Tesla’s equity but controls 85.1% of SpaceX’s voting power through a super-voting share class, meaning he would largely be negotiating the terms with himself.
Not everyone is convinced the timing is imminent. Traders on Kalshi place only 33% odds that a merger will happen before May 2027. The more immediate concern for Tesla shareholders is whether the SpaceX IPO pulls capital and Musk’s attention away from Tesla before any merger consolidates the upside for both.
What is clear is that the structural groundwork is already being laid. The Terafab announcement, the xAI merger, the shared supply chain, the cross-company balance sheet transactions, and now the IPO all point in the same direction. Whether the merger follows in 2027 or later, the two companies are already operating more like divisions of a single entity than independent competitors.
Elon Musk
SpaceX to become America’s Military data backbone for missiles, drones, and warfighters
The Space Force just handed SpaceX $2.29 billion to build the military’s space internet backbone.
The U.S. Space Force awarded SpaceX a $2.29 billion contract on May 26, 2026 to build the backbone of its Space Data Network, a satellite-based communications system designed to keep American military forces connected anywhere on Earth in real time. The contract is firm-fixed-price and requires SpaceX to deliver a fully operational prototype by the end of 2027.
In plain terms, the SDN Backbone is the plumbing behind the military’s space-based internet. It functions as a low Earth orbit satellite constellation providing robust, high-capacity, and low-latency data transport for the Joint Force, connecting sensors and weapons systems continuously, globally, and securely. Think of it as a private, hardened version of Starlink built specifically for battlefield communications, one that soldiers, ships, and aircraft can rely on even in contested environments where ground-based networks have been disrupted.
SpaceX is quietly becoming the U.S. Military’s only reliable rocket
The Space Force was direct about why SpaceX was selected. “The SDN Backbone leverages the best of commercial innovation and delivers a strong foundation for the SDN mission set — a huge benefit and enabler for our warfighters,” said USSF Col. Ryan Frazier.
“We aren’t trading speed for scale; we are demanding both. By using rapid prototyping and Other Transaction Authorities, we are ensuring our advanced solutions are integrated and delivered to the warfighter as fast as possible,” added USSF Lt. Col. Fry, SDN Backbone system program manager.
The SDN Backbone will work alongside the Space Development Agency’s Transport Layer, with the two systems forming a unified open architecture to provide critical data transport for current and future Department of War missions.
As Teslarati has reported, this is not SpaceX’s first Space Force contract of 2026. In April, the Space Force awarded SpaceX $178.5 million to launch missile tracking satellites, and SpaceX is already embedded in the Golden Dome missile defense software group. The $2.29 billion SDN Backbone award puts SpaceX at the center of how the American military communicates in space, a position with direct implications for its reported $1.75 trillion IPO valuation as the company heads toward a public offering as early as June 2026.
Tesla’s Robotaxi dreams just took a massive step toward reality
The Tesla and SpaceX merger everyone is talking about is quietly building
