You probably know it, at least through its founder. SpaceX, the company founded by South African billionaire Elon Musk, is still making waves. Whether for its partnership with Nasa, the American aerospace giant, or for its controversial space tourism projects, SpaceX regularly makes the headlines.
Having launched the first private rocket to reach Earth orbit, the Falcon 1, in 2008, Elon Musk is multiplying his projects, each more ambitious than the last. After taking to the roads with his Tesla brand of electric cars, the sultry entrepreneur has conquered space. Nothing seems to be able to stop him.
Why has Elon Musk taken on the aerospace market? Who are his partners? What are his goals? Focus on the new astronautics giant SpaceX.
Elon Musk, an ultra-ambitious entrepreneur
Elon Musk is one of the most talked-about entrepreneurs of the last decade. Having cut his teeth in the computer industry, the businessman diversified his activities to become, in January 2021, the richest man on the planet, with a fortune estimated at over $188.5 billion. Here's a look back at his meteoric rise.
A (very) precocious businessman
Elon Musk grew up in South Africa in a rather well-off family: his father was, among other things, co-owner of an emerald mine, and his mother a nutritionist and model. Despite his parents' divorce and what he describes as a difficult childhood, the young man acquired an education and developed an entrepreneurial spirit from an early age. He even sold his first video game program at the age of 12 for $500.
After successfully completing his studies in his home country, he decided to emigrate to Canada. It was here that he obtained a degree in administration from Queen's University. For Musk, Canada was just a stepping stone to the United States, where he entered the University of Pennsylvania in 1992. He graduated with a Joint honours degree in physics. The future businessman then enrolled at Stanford University, which he soon left, seduced by the sirens of the Internet, then in full development. It was at this point that he decided to launch his own company.
A jack-of-all-trades
Understanding the enormous potential of the Internet, Elon Musk founded the company Zip2. Zip is an online content publishing software for corporate information. The company's success led to its acquisition by Compaq in 1999, for $341 million in cash and stock options. Elon Musk and his brother Kimbal owned around 12% of Zip2 at the time.
The South African didn't stop there, and in 1999 he founded an online bank called X.com. Although the online banking service was not a great success, the online payment company PayPalacquired in March 2000, won over many consumers. X.com was renamed PayPal in February 2001, before being sold to online retail giant eBay for $1.5 billion. At the time, Elon Musk owned almost 12% of PayPal, or $180 million.
If Elon Musk is known the world over, it's probably because of his role in the electric car company Tesla. electric car company Tesla. He acquired a stake in the company in 2004 and took control in October 2008, becoming Chairman. He revolutionized the world of electric cars, offering sustainable, affordable vehicles. He launched the Tesla Model 3 in 2018, establishing himself as THE benchmark in the industry. Thanks to the profits generated, the entrepreneur finances research and development to create ever more efficient and affordable models.
SpaceX, conquering space
Today, SpaceX is well known to the general public, especially for its plans for tourist trips into space. The idea may seem utopian, or even make some environmental activists cringe, but it's a testament to the Pretoria-born entrepreneur's great ambition.
A difficult start
In 2002, Elon Musk decided to create an aerospace company to counter the lack of ambition of Nasa. He felt that Nasa was losing momentum and no longer had any innovative projects to propose. Elon Musk's main objective was to drive down the cost of space missions and offer renewable aeronautical materials.
To develop his project, the businessman turned to the Russian Federation: he proposed to NPO Lavochtkine to buy their military missiles and turn them into rockets. The project was not taken seriously by the company, and the billionaire's offer was rejected.
Elon Musk decided to develop his project alone, with "only" $200 million (obtained after the sale of PayPal and Zip2). Between 2005 and 2008, SpaceX set about developing the Falcon 1 rocket. The first three flights were a complete failure. However, NASA was won over by the South African's ambition, and decided to inject some 300 million dollars into the company. This investment was made as part of the Commercial Orbital Transportation Service (COTS) program.
A project that takes off
Thanks to Nasa funding, SpaceX can finally launch its now famous rocket Falcon 9 rocket. The issue of rocket reuse is becoming a key one in the aerospace industry, so much so that benchmarks such as the European Space Agency are working on it with its Ariane 6 rocket.
The first Falcon 9 launches were successful, but landings were unsuccessful. The company continued its tests, and the crowning achievement came in 2015, when SpaceX succeeded in rescue a Falcon 9 in its entirety. This was a real feat, and one that attracted international attention. SpaceX succeeded where many researchers had failed, and Nasa's confidence in Elon Musk's company was all the greater for it.
The agreement between NASA and SpaceX is working so well that contracts and other associations are multiplying. November 16, 2020, NASA cooperates with SpaceX to send a crew of four astronauts to the International Space Station. Since then, the two entities have joined forces for resupply missions, as well as space research aimed at perfecting aeronautical equipment.
Objective Mars
As his brother Kimbal explains, Elon Musk has always been fascinated by the Red Planet. the Red Planet. Although the entrepreneur's initial budget didn't allow him to envisage plans for a launch to Mars, recent partnerships with NASA and numerous investments now allow him to realize his ambitions.
Controversial projects
The company founded by Elon Musk is launching one satellite after another. Whether through public or private partnerships, SpaceX's projects do not meet with unanimous approval. The latest controversy concerns the Starlink project. Its aim was to place several thousand satellites in orbit to provide global Internet coverage. At the time, the scientific community was denouncing the - mainly - light pollution that the project would cause.
Colonizing the Red Planet
Despite the controversy, Elon Musk continues to dream. He plans to put people on the Moon by 2025, and land the first first colony on Mars by 2030.. While these projects may seem hard to achieve in such a short space of time, you can expect anything from an entrepreneur as audacious as Elon Musk. Who knows, the future may well be built on Mars...
SpaceX: key information
The workforce
By February 2021, SpaceX had nearly 9,500 employees.
Sales figures
In 2021, the SpaceX aerospace company will have sales of $74 billion.
Initial public offering
Despite a valuation of around $127 billion, SpaceX has yet to go public.
Business and strategic objectives
SpaceX and its founder Elon Musk have many projects. The first is to return to the Moon, and the second is to establish a human colony on Mars. NASA and, indirectly, the US government are investing large sums in the company to carry out their space projects. SpaceX intends to raise $1.27 billion in the near future.
Scalability
With ever more ambitious projects and the near-total confidence of the US government and NASA, SpaceX is a company destined for a bright future. The conquest of space is not over, and the company intends to be one of the major players in it. SpaceX's valuation has risen enormously in recent years, and its ascent is far from over.
Mantra/Citation CEO
SpaceX designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecrafts. (SpaceX designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecrafts).
