SpaceX has posted stronger than expected second-quarter revenue in its first earnings report since becoming a public company, easing investor concerns about its path to profitability following a sharp share price fall after its stock market debut. The Elon Musk-led firm reported $7.81bn in revenue, a 92% jump since June and above analysts' forecast of $6.93bn, though it remains loss-making. Chief executive Musk described it as "another milestone year", but the update comes at a sensitive moment for the company, whose stock has fallen 24% since its record-breaking June IPO, which briefly valued it at $2tn and made Musk the world's first trillionaire.

Despite the beat, SpaceX still posted a net loss of $541m, an improvement on the $1bn loss recorded a year earlier, and shares dipped more than 8% in after-hours trading, likely reflecting heavy capital spending. Its three main divisions all outperformed forecasts: space generated $962m, connectivity (via Starlink) $4.29bn, and artificial intelligence $2.56bn. Only the Starlink connectivity business is currently profitable. Executives, including president Gwynne Shotwell, also highlighted progress on Starship launches and reiterated ambitions to land people on the Moon "by at least 2028", ahead of employee lockup shares becoming tradeable.