SpaceX sees itself as infrastructure company, plans data centers on Earth and in orbit: COO Gwynne Shotwell

SpaceX is positioning itself as an infrastructure company that spans launch services, satellite communications and artificial intelligence computing, with plans to build data centres both on Earth and eventually in orbit, President and Chief Operating Officer Gwynne Shotwell said on Friday.Speaking exclusively to CNBC after SpaceX’s blockbuster Nasdaq debut, Shotwell said investors should view the company as more than a space and satellite business as it expands deeper into AI infrastructure.

“One hundred percent. We are builders,” Shotwell said when asked whether SpaceX should be seen as a competitor in the emerging AI cloud and computing market.
“We build our own launch vehicles, we build our launch sites, and we’re building data centres, both on the ground and, soon, in orbit. So I look at us as an infrastructure company,” she added.The comments offer one of the clearest indications yet of how SpaceX plans to leverage its satellite network and growing AI ambitions to enter a market currently dominated by major technology firms investing heavily in data centres and computing capacity.

Shotwell’s remarks come days after Elon Musk unveiled the AI-1 data satellite programme. She said SpaceX expects to launch the full AI-1 satellites late next year but will first begin placing computing capabilities on existing Starlink broadband and Starlink Mobile satellites.
“I think we’ll be launching the full AI-1 satellites late next year, but we will be putting compute on some of the Starlink broadband and Starlink Mobile satellites prior to that,” Shotwell said.The company intends to test the technology before scaling it up. “We want to make sure we understand the operation. We love doing canary tests and canary work before we fly the real thing,” she said.

Shotwell also suggested SpaceX believes it can compete in AI infrastructure without matching the spending levels of some rivals.

“I think our use of compute is pretty efficient, so I don’t think we’ll have to spend quite as much capex as they are,” she said, referring to companies investing aggressively in AI computing and model development.

The executive highlighted Starship development as well as growth in Starlink’s consumer, enterprise and mobile businesses as key areas for investors to monitor following the company’s public market debut.

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SpaceX began trading on the Nasdaq on Friday under the ticker SPCX, marking the largest initial public offering ever and one of the most closely watched market debuts in recent years.

The shares opened at $150 and continued to climb during the session, reaching $166.90 around 12:20 pm ET. At that level, the company was valued at roughly $2.18 trillion, while Forbes estimated Musk’s net worth at about $1.1 trillion.