SpaceX just revealed an important timeline for launching data centers in space

SpaceX just revealed an important timeline for launching data centers in space

Brian Sozzi · Executive Editor

Fri, September 11, 2026 at 8:03 PM GMT+3 2 min read

• SPCX +1.01%

It was all systems go for SpaceX (SPCX) CFO Bret Johnsen at his first post-IPO investor conference this week.

The veteran SpaceX exec didn't disappoint on two important fronts.

For one, he finally put up a stronger timeline on launching data centers in space — or as the industry calls them, orbital compute satellites.

"We're actually targeting to fly our first orbital compute satellites next year," Johnsen said on Thursday at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia & Tech conference. "I think that will be an enormous moment when they start, and when everybody starts to see that we're putting up huge amounts of compute into space going into 2028, because that's the right way to do this anyway, and then everyone will see that the timeline is far shorter than people had expected."

For another, Johnsen said there will be another Starship flight later this month that will be revenue-generating and carry production V3 Starlink satellites.

"We walk away incrementally more bullish on the visibility and monetization of the AI infrastructure opportunity, while also seeing a more aggressive competitive posture emerging in mobile," Evercore ISI analyst Kutgun Maral wrote. "The roadmap is getting more specific, but Starship cadence and reuse remain the common execution dependency across broadband, Mobile and orbital compute."

Maral reiterated an Outperform rating on the stock.

(SPCX )

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149.67 +1.49 (+1.01%)

As of 1:40:08 PM EDT. Market Open.

SpaceX stock finished Thursday's session up slightly. It gained another 0.5% in early trading on Friday.

The shares rallied from an intraday low of $104.83 on Aug. 3 up to nearly $150 this month. SpaceX's record-high stock price is $225.64, reached shortly after its public market debut in June.

While Johnson's strong conference showing is welcomed, investors need not forget the company's first earnings report as a public company, as more reports like it could be on the way this year.

In the second quarter, the company lost a ton of money. SpaceX's capital expenditures of $18.4 billion were also well above analyst estimates of around $6 billion. Lastly, the company didn't provide specific guidance for 2026.

Wall Street has stayed bullish, however. About 80% of the sell-side analysts rate SpaceX a Buy or Strong Buy, per Yahoo Finance AlphaSpace data.

"While the stock remains negatively impacted on elevated capex expectations and questions on how SPCX will monetize its capabilities through AI and Starlink Mobile, we are more positive in SPCX's positioning across its key markets following 2Q," Bank of America analyst Ronald Epstein wrote in a note.

Brian Sozzi is Yahoo Finance's Executive Editor, host of the Power Players with Brian Sozzi podcast, and a member of Yahoo Finance's editorial leadership team. Follow Sozzi on X @BrianSozzi, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Tips on stories? Email brian.sozzi@yahoofinance.com.

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