SpaceX has been named one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential Companies of 2025, earning a spot in the publication’s “Pioneers” category. The recognition reflects SpaceX’s ever-growing impact on space exploration, global connectivity, and even politics.
According to TIME, SpaceX founder Elon Musk wields unmatched influence in both the public and private sectors. The company’s workhorse Falcon 9 rocket has now completed 489 launches since 2010, making it the most reliable and frequently used orbital launcher in the world.
Meanwhile, SpaceX’s next-gen Starship — its fully reusable deep-space system — remains in active development. Starship has launched nine test flights since 2023, with the tenth delayed after a prototype exploded on the pad earlier this month, highlighting the high-stakes nature of innovation at this scale.
Despite the setback, Starship remains central to NASA’s Artemis program, with the spacecraft set to serve as the lunar lander for America’s return to the Moon.
The TIME feature also touches on recent political tension between Musk and U.S. President Donald Trump over a controversial GOP legislative push. Musk opposed the bill, and the conflict escalated publicly. Yet even amid political friction, neither party seems willing to risk grounding America’s only active human-rated launch system in SpaceX.
Elsewhere, SpaceX continues to rack up milestones. Just days ago, the company launched the Ax-4 mission to the International Space Station, marking another successful crewed flight under its commercial spaceflight program. On the connectivity front, SpaceX’s Starlink internet service has seen download speeds double in the U.S. since 2022, offering faster and more accessible broadband in rural and underserved regions.
With unmatched launch cadence, ambitious hardware development, and global internet ambitions, SpaceX continues to redefine what’s possible in aerospace — and TIME’s recognition only reinforces that.
