Elon Musk announced that SpaceX is prioritizing the development of a “self-growing city” on the moon over his longstanding goal of colonizing Mars, citing faster timelines for lunar settlement as the key factor.
The billionaire entrepreneur, who owns the social media platform X, made the disclosure in a post on Sunday, noting that constraints on interplanetary travel make the moon more feasible in the near term. Musk estimated a human society on the moon could be established within a decade, compared to at least twice that for Mars.
“For those unaware, SpaceX has already shifted focus to building a self-growing city on the Moon,” Musk wrote.
He highlighted logistical differences: Trips to Mars are limited to windows every 26 months with a six-month journey, while launches to the moon can occur every 10 days and take just two days, enabling quicker progress.
Musk stressed that Mars efforts will continue in parallel, starting in five or six years, but the moon takes precedence.
“The overriding priority is securing the future of civilization, and the Moon is faster,” Musk added.
He reaffirmed SpaceX’s broader vision: “The mission of SpaceX remains the same: extend consciousness and life as we know it to the stars.”
The change marks a departure for Musk, who has championed Mars colonization for more than a decade as essential for humanity’s survival amid potential Earth catastrophes.
He has previously dismissed moon-focused initiatives by rivals and NASA, posting last year: “No, we’re going straight to Mars. The Moon is a distraction.”
SpaceX’s rise has transformed the industry, with private companies increasingly securing government contracts. NASA, aiming for its first crewed moon landing since 1972 under the Artemis III program, now targeted for 2028, awarded SpaceX nearly $3 billion to build the lunar lander using its Starship rocket. However, Starship has faced setbacks, including test-flight explosions and failures to reach orbit, which have contributed to mission delays.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, a former NASA acting administrator, has warned that the agency may replace SpaceX with Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, which has shifted resources from space tourism to lunar vehicles. Blue Origin also holds significant government deals.
Musk’s announcement follows SpaceX’s agreement last week to acquire his AI company xAI, creating a combined entity valued at $1.25 trillion. SpaceX provides rocket launches for government clients and operates the Starlink satellite network, while xAI manages X and the Grok chatbot. Musk has discussed plans for space-based AI data centers and orbital satellite manufacturing, potentially from the moon.
The pivot comes amid Musk’s history of optimistic timelines that often slip. He projected uncrewed Starship missions to Mars as early as late 2026 last year, following earlier targets like 2018 and 2022 that were not met. Similar delays have affected Tesla’s humanoid robots and self-driving cars.
SpaceX is reportedly considering an initial public offering in mid-June, timed to a rare planetary alignment and Musk’s 55th birthday.