SpaceX reports $7.8 billion revenue in first earnings since IPO, AI business grows 3x

Aug 3, 2026

In its first earnings report since a record IPO, SpaceX announced $7.8 billion in revenue, beating estimates, but posted a $541 million loss driven by $18.37 billion in capital expenditures. The company's AI business revenue tripled to $2.6 billion through new compute-leasing deals. Despite the revenue beat, shares fell over 10% as investors weighed heavy spending on future projects like the Starship rocket and orbital data centers against ongoing losses.

Stock performance since IPO

▪Short sellers have realized approximately $8.3 billion in paper profits by betting against SpaceX's stock since the IPO.
▪Since its IPO on June 12, 2026, SpaceX's market capitalization has fallen by over $500 billion.
▪SpaceX went public in June 2026 in the largest-ever initial public offering.
▪Following its first earnings report, SpaceX's shares declined more than 10% in after-hours trading.
▪The company's stock is more than 50% below its intraday high set after the IPO.

Starship development challenges

▪The company's space division costs rose by $389 million from the prior year, primarily driven by Starship development.
▪During a test flight on July 24, 2026, Starship's booster experienced a "hard splashdown" after a partial engine ignition failure during its landing burn.

AI business expansion

▪SpaceX's AI division revenue grew more than three times year-over-year to $2.6 billion.
▪Elon Musk stated SpaceX is building AI compute capacity "at scale faster than anyone else."
▪SpaceX has an agreement to acquire AI-coding startup Cursor for $60 billion, pending regulatory approval.
▪The AI division posted an operating loss of $1.26 billion, which was less than analysts had expected.

Earnings expectations

▪SpaceX reported a quarterly net loss of $541 million, an improvement from a $1 billion loss in the same period a year ago.
▪The company's capital expenditures increased to $18.37 billion for the quarter, up from $2.8 billion a year prior.
▪On an investor call, Elon Musk said SpaceX would launch data centers into space starting in 2027 and moved up his projection for achieving $1 trillion in revenue to 2030.
▪The Starlink connectivity segment generated $4.2 billion in revenue, while the space segment generated $962 million.
▪The reported revenue of $7.8 billion surpassed the average analyst estimate of $6.81 billion.
▪In its first report as a public company, SpaceX announced Q2 revenue of $7.8 billion, a 92% increase year-over-year.

Analyst ratings

▪Steve Westly, a former Tesla board member, stated that SpaceX can compete in AI, but it will not be cheap.
▪New Street Research set a $165 target price, calling the stock's post-IPO decline an "attractive entry point" for long-term investors.
▪Analysts at Bernstein recommend buying SpaceX stock with a $239 price target, viewing management's confidence as more important than quarterly results.