SpaceX and Tesla owner Elon Musk posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday that the company’s Starlink satellite internet service achieved “break-even cash flow,” a financial benchmark that shows the business is moving in the right direction.
“Excited to announce that SpaceX Starlink has achieved breakeven cash flow! Excellent work by a great team,” Musk posted on X.
The news is a step forward for Starlink, which since launch, hasn’t experienced the success it planned for. The service fell short of its 2015 prediction of reaching $12 billion in revenue and $7 billion in operating profit. At the end of 2022, Starlink’s revenue totaled $1.4 billion. Musk added that Starlink makes up a majority of all active satellites. He plans to “launch a majority of all satellites” cumulatively by next year.
There was also a gap between reality and expectations when it came to the service’s anticipated users. By the end of 2022, Starlink expected to have 20 million customers, but only amassed one million. However, the service has added about a million customers in the last nine months.
Last month, SpaceX killed the internet service’s waitlist, making Starlink available for the anyone in the U.S. While the wider availability may drive subscriptions, potential customers may still be reluctant to accept Starlink’s massive price tag.