Elon Musk's SpaceX deepening ties to US intelligence, military agencies

Elon Musk's SpaceX is deepening its ties with U.S. intelligence and military agencies through classified contracts ranging in the billions of dollars.

SpaceX has long been a major partner for the U.S. in launching military satellites, but documents reviewed by the Wall Street Journal show the company entered into a massive $1.8 billion classified contract with the U.S. government in 2021. SpaceX will not publicly clarify the government agency behind the contract.

SpaceX has also developed a branch of the company, Starshield, specifically to deal with government clients. The organization claims its satellites can handle secure communications and capture data, among other capabilities. The U.S. military entered into a $70 million contract with Starshield in August 2023, according to WSJ.