Elon Musk reflected on the remarkable rise of SpaceX and the importance of its long-term mission as the company went public on Friday, a milestone that is set to mark one of the most significant moments in the history of the private space industry.
Speaking at an event in Texas, Musk looked back on the early days of SpaceX, when many believed the company had little chance of surviving, let alone revolutionizing the aerospace industry. He recalled warning people that the company was likely to fail, but argued that taking the risk was necessary if humanity was ever going to expand beyond Earth. Musk said the company's mission has always been about more than launching satellites or supplying cargo to space stations. Instead, he described SpaceX as an effort to develop the technology needed to make life multi-planetary and transform humanity into a true "space-faring civilization."
🚨 LMAO! ELON MUSK: "If people told me this was gonna happen, I was like, you must be smoking some REALLY good crack!" 🤣
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) June 12, 2026
"I gave SpaceX less than a 10% chance of succeeding at ALL."
"If we don't try, if there's not a new company that enters space, we will never truly be a… pic.twitter.com/849faC14iS
"If people had told me this was gonna happen, I was like, 'Man, you must be smoking some really good crack.' I think this company's gonna fail. I mean, I gave SpaceX less than a 10 percent chance of succeeding at all, to be clear. In fact, I told people this: 'Look, we're probably gonna fail, but, you know, we should give it a try because if we don't, if there's not a new company that enters space, we will never be a truly space-faring civilization.' The other aerospace companies, they build good rockets and everything. They were simply not pursuing the technology that's necessary to make life multi-planetary, to make Star Trek, to make the exciting science fiction futures that we've read about."
This comes as SpaceX is currently valued at approximately $1.77 trillion following its public debut, with 555.6 million shares released on Friday. The company's initial public offering (IPO) priced shares at $135 each, although opening trading was expected to be significantly higher, with shares projected to trade closer to $175.
🚨 BREAKING — IT'S OFFICIAL: Elon Musk becomes the world's first TRILLIONAIRE as SpaceX goes public
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) June 12, 2026
This is absolutely MONUMENTAL. Congratulations @ElonMusk!
To the moon! 🚀$SPCX is set to start trading at $135 per share imminently, valuing the company around $1.8 TRILLION. pic.twitter.com/hyyMcHC4Rc