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SpaceX’s next-gen Falcon 9 spied continuing tests in Texas

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Awaiting the first static fire of SpaceX’s newest upgraded Falcon 9, known as Block 5, local observers and SpaceX fans alike have been on high alert ever since the first booster (B1046) went vertical at the company’s McGregor, TX facilities on Feb. 26.

Preparing for a suite of tests ahead of its inaugural launch from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center, B1046 has been quiet in Texas for much longer than most Falcon hardware. Much like the additional static fires they complete at SpaceX’s launch facilities, boosters are meant to spend less than a week or two on the static fire test stand in McGregor – several days to set up, a few days to complete the static fire, and several days to validate the data gathered and ensure that the hardware is still healthy. 1046, however, has remained vertical at the TX test stand for a bit more than three weeks, and only appears to have ignited once for very brief (~1s) firing around two weeks ago.

 

According to photos taken by Reddit user HollywoodSX, the booster is still vertical at the stand as of March 20, and is now sporting what looks like an odd splotch above its relocated “SpaceX” logo. At this point, it can be assumed that SpaceX is cautious with significantly new Falcon 9 hardware, carefully testing a booster with fairly new structures, heat-shielding, Merlin 1Ds, and an array of additional refinements.

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Perhaps the first static fire attempt was scrubbed prematurely; perhaps it was intentionally brief to check out startup parameters for all nine Merlins; or perhaps it began as a wet dress rehearsal (propellant loading test) that proceeded into an ignition test. More probably, however, the first routine static fire attempt likely uncovered some minor bugs in the booster’s new hardware or design, signified by the fact that B1046 appears to have remained vertical for the entire interim period. Had serious problems been uncovered, the rocket would have been brought horizontal and taken inside SpaceX’s on-site facilities for in-depth analysis, disassembly, and repairs or modifications.

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Moreover, SpaceX shipped another Falcon 9 booster out of its Hawthorne, CA factory on Monday, March 19. Barring something far outside the norm, the above booster is almost certainly B1047, better known as the second-ever Block 5 first stage. 1047’s shipment would all but guarantee that 1046’s testing is progressing largely as planned. If there were, in fact, major issues with the rocket leading to unplanned delays, 1047 would almost certainly remain at SpaceX’s Hawthorne factory until the problems with the booster in McGregor could be properly characterized. If repairs or modifications had to occur, Hawthorne is a far more convenient and optimal environment to complete them, and delaying shipment would also avoid unnecessarily taking the risk and wasting the week or so it takes to prepare and ship the rocket cross-country.

All things considered, Block 5’s inaugural flight appears to be moving forward slowly but surely, and anyone with interest in aerospace is eagerly awaiting its first flights. As of March 18, the satellite – Bangabandhu-1 – is still in France, awaiting confirmation from SpaceX of T-15 days to launch before shipping out to Florida. Tentatively scheduled for launch NET April 5, that date would appear to need SpaceX’s confirmation today – any later and the launch is likely to be delayed equivalently.

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Up next for SpaceX is the fifth launch for Iridium Communications, NET March 29 from California. Days later, SpaceX’s next reused Cargo Dragon mission (CRS-14) is scheduled to lift off from SpaceX’s Florida LC-40 pad on April 2. Both launches will feature sooty, flight-proven Falcon 9 boosters and will be covered live by Teslarati’s photographers Pauline Acalin and Tom Cross.

Follow us for live updates, behind-the-scenes sneak peeks, and a sea of beautiful photos from our East and West coast photographers.

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Pauline Acalin  Twitter

Eric Ralph Twitter

Eric Ralph is Teslarati's senior spaceflight reporter and has been covering the industry in some capacity for almost half a decade, largely spurred in 2016 by a trip to Mexico to watch Elon Musk reveal SpaceX's plans for Mars in person. Aside from spreading interest and excitement about spaceflight far and wide, his primary goal is to cover humanity's ongoing efforts to expand beyond Earth to the Moon, Mars, and elsewhere.

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SpaceX makes first acquisition post-IPO

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Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX has exercised its option to acquire Cursor, the innovative AI coding company, in an all-stock transaction valued at $60 billion. The deal, announced on June 16, marks a significant step in SpaceX’s expansion into advanced artificial intelligence, building on months of close collaboration between the companies.

Cursor, officially operated by Anysphere, Inc., is an AI-native code editor and coding agent designed to transform software development. Founded in 2022 by a group of MIT graduates in San Francisco, Cursor builds on the familiar foundation of Visual Studio Code but integrates powerful AI capabilities directly into the core experience.

Unlike traditional code editors or simple extensions, Cursor functions as a full “coding agent” that turns natural-language instructions into actionable code.

Developers interact with Cursor through features like its Composer agent, which can search entire codebases, edit multiple files, run terminal commands, debug issues, and complete complex multi-step programming tasks autonomously.

Users describe high-level goals, such as “build a scalable API endpoint with authentication,” and the AI plans, implements, tests, and refines the solution while the human oversees decisions. Additional tools include advanced autocomplete (Tab), context-aware chat, and infrastructure for handling billions of daily requests.

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The platform has gained considerable traction, surpassing $3 billion in annual recurring revenue by early 2026 and earning adoption by over half of the Fortune 500 companies. Its agentic approach accelerates development dramatically, allowing engineers to focus on architecture and creativity rather than repetitive coding.

The acquisition integrates Cursor’s leading product, expert team of roughly 300 engineers, and distribution network among top software developers with SpaceX’s unparalleled computational resources. SpaceX’s Colossus supercomputer, equivalent to a million H100 GPUs, has already powered joint training of next-generation models. These models are expected to launch soon within Cursor and SpaceX’s Grok Build environment.

This combination positions SpaceX to develop the world’s most capable AI systems for coding and knowledge work. Access to Cursor’s real-world usage data from millions of professional developers provides unparalleled feedback loops for model improvement. Training on Colossus enables rapid iteration on massive datasets, potentially creating AI that outperforms current leaders in reliability, context handling, and complex reasoning.

For SpaceX, the benefits extend far beyond software tools. Rocket engineering, satellite constellation management, autonomous flight systems, and Starship development involve millions of lines of highly specialized, safety-critical code.

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Cursor’s AI agents, supercharged by proprietary models trained on SpaceX’s domain expertise, could slash development timelines, reduce errors, and enable faster innovation cycles. This vertical integration of AI tooling strengthens SpaceX’s competitive edge in both aerospace and the broader AI race, complementing its xAI initiatives.

The deal reflects the exploding value of AI-native developer platforms. By owning Cursor outright, SpaceX secures a strategic talent pool and product pipeline that will accelerate internal projects while potentially offering enhanced tools to the wider engineering community. As AI continues reshaping software creation, this acquisition underscores SpaceX’s commitment to leveraging cutting-edge technology for ambitious goals, from Mars colonization to global connectivity.

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SpaceX soars with its first launch as a public company, marking a new era

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Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX executed its first Falcon 9 launch since going public on June 15, a routine yet symbolically powerful Starlink mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

Liftoff of the Falcon 9 booster B1093, on its 14th flight, occurred at approximately 8:34 a.m. PDT from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E), deploying 24 Starlink V2 Mini Optimized satellites into low-Earth orbit.

The first stage successfully landed on the droneship “Of Course I Still Love You” in the Pacific Ocean, underscoring the company’s unmatched reusability track record.

This mission comes just three days after SpaceX’s historic IPO on June 12, which shattered records as the largest ever. The company raised $75 billion by pricing shares at $135, with trading under ticker SPCX on Nasdaq opening at $150 and closing at $160.95—a 19 percent gain—valuing SpaceX at over $2.1 trillion.

The launch highlights the seamless transition from private innovator to public powerhouse. SpaceX, founded in 2002, has revolutionized access to space with over 650 Falcon 9 flights and a massive Starlink constellation now serving millions globally.

As a public company, it faces new pressures: quarterly earnings, shareholder scrutiny, and expectations to accelerate Starship development for Mars ambitions and deeper NASA partnerships. Yet the market response signals strong confidence in its dominance, as launch costs are slashed by 95 percent, rapid satellite deployment, and a backlog of government and commercial contracts.

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SpaceX maintains bold advertising push for Starlink, contrasting Tesla’s minimalistic approach

Analysts view today’s flight as business as usual, but it carries extra weight. With shares volatile in early trading days, successful operations reassure investors that core capabilities remain unaffected by public status.

SpaceX now operates under heightened transparency, potentially unlocking capital for ambitious goals like Starship orbital tests and global broadband expansion.

Challenges loom, including regulatory hurdles for megaconstellations, competition in reusable rockets, and orbital debris concerns. Nevertheless, this morning’s flawless execution reinforces SpaceX’s trajectory.

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As Musk often notes, the company’s mission—to make humanity multiplanetary—now aligns with Wall Street’s growth demands. The stars, it seems, are aligning for both.

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Investor's Corner

Tesla and SpaceX’s biggest bull just placed a massive $1B bet on the stock

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Ron Baron on Tesla stock

Renowned investor Ron Baron, founder and CEO of Baron Capital, has once again demonstrated his unwavering faith in Elon Musk’s ventures.

Just after SpaceX’s record-breaking IPO, Baron announced he purchased an additional $1 billion in SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) shares. This move pushes Baron Capital’s total holdings in the company to a staggering $25 billion in market value, underscoring one of the most successful private-to-public investment stories in recent history.

Baron’s relationship with SpaceX dates back to 2017, when his firm began investing approximately $1.75–2 billion through secondary markets and employee tender offers at valuations around $20–22 billion.

By the time of the IPO, which valued SpaceX at over $2 trillion with shares closing near $161, those early stakes had generated more than $13 billion in unrealized gains. Post-IPO, Baron’s position ballooned further, reflecting the company’s meteoric rise driven by reusable rocketry, Starlink’s global satellite internet constellation, Starshield defense applications, and ambitious plans for orbital infrastructure.

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In a recent interview, Baron articulated his bullish outlook with characteristic enthusiasm.

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“I think we’re going to make hundreds of billions of dollars,” he stated, emphasizing that SpaceX’s achievements in rocketry and satellite technology are “not possible for anyone else to accomplish.” He envisions the company as a cornerstone of humanity’s multi-planetary future, potentially reaching valuations of $10–30 trillion within 10–15 years.

Baron has repeatedly affirmed he has no plans to sell, viewing SpaceX as a “lifetime investment” alongside Tesla.

Tesla bull Ron Baron reveals $100M SpaceX investment, sees 3-5x return on TSLA

This conviction stems from SpaceX’s unparalleled execution. The company has revolutionized access to space with Falcon 9 reusability, deployed thousands of Starlink satellites, and is advancing Starship for Mars missions and point-to-point Earth transport.

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Baron highlights emerging opportunities like space-based AI data centers and direct-to-cell satellite connectivity, positioning SpaceX at the forefront of a new space economy projected to generate trillions in value.

Critics may question the lofty projections amid high valuations and execution risks, but Baron’s track record speaks volumes. His Tesla holdings, initiated in the mid-2010s, have also delivered outsized returns. As one of the largest institutional holders of SpaceX pre-IPO, Baron Capital’s funds, such as Baron Partners, benefited immensely from valuation markups.

Baron’s $1 billion IPO purchase signals deep confidence in SpaceX’s post-IPO trajectory. In an era of short-term market noise, his strategy exemplifies patient capital: backing visionary leadership and transformative technology.

For investors watching the space sector, it serves as a powerful endorsement that the final frontier may indeed yield the next great wealth-creation engine. As Baron puts it, SpaceX isn’t just building rockets—it’s trying to “save humanity” by expanding our horizons beyond Earth.

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