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SpaceX posts first public-company profit as AI revenue surges and Tesla merger talks emerge

SpaceX reported $14.58 billion in third-quarter revenue and $4.4 billion in net income, while Elon Musk said a SpaceX-Tesla merger would be “a good idea” as independent committees discuss a possible deal.

jajoy39

Oct 21, 2026 - 11:40

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SpaceX corporate logo. This is a company-brand illustration, not an image of a reported merger. — Image: SpaceX

SpaceX posts first public-company profit as AI revenue surges and Tesla merger talks emerge

SpaceX reported its first profit as a public company and said revenue climbed 161% year over year to $14.58 billion in the three months ended September 30. Net income was $4.4 billion, compared with a $1.1 billion loss a year earlier.

The company’s AI-related revenue rose almost tenfold to $7.56 billion, largely from renting data-centre capacity to developers including Anthropic, Google and Reflection AI. Capital spending nearly tripled to $19.6 billion, underscoring the cost of building that capacity.

On a call with investors, Elon Musk said a merger with Tesla would be “a good idea.” He said special committees of independent directors had been formed at the request of shareholders, but stressed that no transaction terms had been agreed and a deal might never happen.

SpaceX said Starlink had 13.6 million subscribers in the quarter. The company expects fourth-quarter capital expenditure of $35 billion to $40 billion, according to the Reuters report.

The results show a business balancing exceptional growth with unusually high investment. AI-related revenue accounted for more than half of quarterly revenue, while capital spending nearly tripled. The expected fourth-quarter spending range would be higher still, making execution and demand important to the company’s cash requirements.

The quarter also leaves investors weighing the relationship between the company’s different businesses. Starlink had 13.6 million subscribers, providing a large communications base, while the AI operation is being built through rented data-centre capacity for developers including Anthropic, Google and Reflection AI. The reported figures do not separate the profitability of those activities, so the headline net income should not be treated as a measure of AI margins alone.

The merger discussion adds a governance and valuation question to an already capital-intensive story. Independent committees were formed at shareholders’ request, but the absence of agreed terms means there is no announced transaction to price. For now, the reported earnings, subscriber count and spending plans are the firm’s measurable operating signals.

Image: SpaceX.