SpaceX Declares War on AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile — Starlink Is Coming for Your Phone Plan

SpaceX is hunting for spectrum and weighing acquisitions to challenge AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile directly. Carrier shares fell 4% on the news.

SpaceX is no longer content just beaming internet from orbit. According to a Semafor exclusive, Elon Musk's space company is actively preparing to compete head-to-head with America's wireless carriers — and it's willing to buy its way in.

SpaceX has been hunting for spectrum that works well in cities and dense urban areas, according to people familiar with the matter. The company is considering two paths: acquiring a competitor outright to obtain its spectrum licenses, or bidding at a government auction set for next year.

Shares of AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon dropped 4% in response to the report, a sign that Wall Street is taking the threat seriously. The incumbent carriers have spent $110 billion over the last decade locking up most of the US's low-band spectrum — a moat that SpaceX now appears determined to cross.

The ambition goes beyond spectrum shopping. SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell demonstrated a prototype mobile handset to investors earlier this year, the Wall Street Journal reported. And Musk himself, asked directly about buying a carrier on the All-In podcast in September 2025, said: "It's not out of the question. I suppose that may happen."

The numbers behind the strategy are staggering. Analysts expect Starlink's mobile business to generate $15 billion in revenue this year alone. In its IPO pitch to investors, SpaceX pegged the total addressable market at $740 billion. For context, the entire US wireless market generates roughly $300 billion annually.

SpaceX is also working on technologies to improve Starlink coverage inside buildings and in tree-covered areas, and Musk has discussed building a hybrid satellite-terrestrial network. The company's official Starlink Mobile page already advertises direct-to-cell service — meaning existing smartphones can connect to Starlink satellites without any hardware modifications.

SpaceX cautioned that plans are fluid and the company could ultimately choose not to follow through. Building a terrestrial network is capital-intensive, requiring continuous investment in both towers and spectrum — investment that would draw capital away from businesses like AI that investors reward more richly.

Still, the signal is unmistakable. After disrupting the launch industry and satellite internet, SpaceX now has the wireless carriers of America in its crosshairs.

Sources: Semafor, Starlink Mobile