Elon Musk wants to build AI satellite factories on the moon—and now SpaceX will compete for NASA’s $10 billion in contracts to build a lunar base

Résumé détaillé

NASA wants to put astronauts on the moon for the long haul, while SpaceX envisions industrializing it long-term.

Before going public at a record $1.77 trillion, SpaceX detailed plans in its S-1 of building a lunar economy by setting up factories on the moon to make AI satellites. For Musk’s vision to turn into reality, someone needs to figure out how to transport equipment to the moon, generate electricity there, and keep communication lines connected to Earth.

NASA is putting money on the table to do it at scale. The federal space agency announced on Nov. 7 it selected eight companies including SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Lockheed Martin Space to compete for contracts worth up to $10 billion to transport equipment and infrastructure to the moon. It’s part of NASA’s goal of building a permanent lunar outpost for astronauts to inhabit.

“We are building the Moon Base mission by mission,” NASA administrator Jared Isaacman said in the announcement. “When our astronauts return to the Moon, they will arrive with the first elements of the Moon Base already waiting for them on the surface.”

The billions in potential contracts show how intertwined the ambitions of federal space programs and the private space sector have become even as they embrace distinct goals, with NASA focused on establishing a place where astronauts can live and work, and SpaceX eyeing lunar space for manufacturing.

NASA declined to comment, and SpaceX did not respond to Fortune’s request for comment.

NASA wants to carve out its first permanent outpost on the moon, starting with its first phase of robotic explorations of its south pole to identify promising locations for future infrastructure in 2029, according to its Moon Base website.

Then, between 2029 and 2032, NASA plans to build up power systems, cargo transportation, and communications networks to “support long-term operations” on the moon. After 2032, the agency will focus on making the outpost livable for astronauts so they can do more ambitious research and do “future journeys deeper into the solar system.”

The challenge of getting equipment and supplies up there…

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