Elon Musk gives update on plans to take Starlink public

Boca Chica, Texas - Elon Musk has reportedly told employees at SpaceX that the company won't be taking Starlink public before 2025.

Elon Musk won't be taking Starlink public anytime soon.
Elon Musk won't be taking Starlink public anytime soon.  © Collage: ANGELA WEISS / AFP & REUTERS

Last week, in a private meeting with SpaceX employees, according to a recording obtained by CNBC, Musk said: "I'm not sure exactly when that [IPO – initial public offering] is, but maybe it will be like – I don't know, just guessing – three or four years from now."

Three to four years would mean that Starlink IPO will only happen after 2025, which is later than Musk's initial estimates.

In an email sent by Musk in May 2019, which was also obtained by CNBC, Musk said that, "it will probably make sense to take Starlink public in about three years or so."

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Musk then pushed back that estimate in a tweet last year. Then he tweeted that it would be "at least a few years before Starlink revenue is reasonably predictable," adding that "going public sooner than that would be very painful."

In the latest meeting, the CEO reportedly repeated this point to SpaceX's employees, insisting that they "should not think of things going public as, like, a sure path to riches."

"The public markets are fickle" and "really pistol-whip you if you don't meet expectations," Musk added.

SpaceX recently raised at least $1.5 billion in a funding round, valuing the company at around $125 billion.

Cover photo: Collage: ANGELA WEISS / AFP & REUTERS

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