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SpaceX Shifts to Moon-First Plan, Targets Uncrewed Landing in March 2027

The company is coupling the pivot with an xAI takeover to fuse AI autonomy with launch systems and lunar construction.

Overview

  • Elon Musk said SpaceX has refocused on building a “self‑growing” city on the Moon, which he suggested could be feasible in under ten years.
  • He added that work toward a Mars city could begin in roughly five to seven years, calling the lunar route the fastest way to secure civilization’s future.
  • The Wall Street Journal reported that SpaceX told investors it is prioritizing lunar access first, with a target for an uncrewed landing in March 2027.
  • SpaceX approved an acquisition of xAI to integrate its Grok AI into rockets, spacecraft and satellites for greater autonomy, with private estimates valuing SpaceX near $1 trillion and xAI around $250 billion.
  • Coverage places the plan in the context of intensifying U.S.–China competition to return to the Moon after the last Apollo landing in 1972.