Is SpaceX a meme stock? Elon Musk loses trillionaire status

July 16, 2026 — 2:02pm

You have reached your maximum number of saved items.

Remove items from your saved list to add more.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has come crashing back down to earth.

The world’s richest man’s satellite-cum-rocket-cum-artificial-intelligence company launched into the stratosphere last month with the largest initial public offering in history.

Buoyed by Musk’s celestial promises – of data centres in outer space and a million-strong colony on Mars – the company’s value soared to $US2.5 trillion ($3.6 trillion) by mid-June.

But when SpaceX’s stock briefly dipped below its IPO price of $US135 on Wednesday, it was a sign that the propulsive hype which briefly made Musk the world’s first trillionaire had slowed.

It was also a sign that investors had started to price in a more sobering reality: one where SpaceX has lost $US13 billion since 2023, and where Musk is essentially asking them to simply “trust me bro” about whether his grand vision of the future will materialise.

At present, you’d be forgiven for thinking that SpaceX bears all the hallmarks of a “meme stock” – a company with share prices that are driven by internet hype rather than anything tangible.

All the ingredients are there to shoot SpaceX’s share price into the stars. But the character of Musk himself makes the whole thing seem very combustible.

Truth is,........

© WA Today