recipes for healthy food: Is Musk Minimising His Mars Ambitions?

After announcing on Sunday that SpaceX is focusing on the construction of a "self-growing city" on the Moon, speculation sparked that Musk might be quietly toning down his long-time obsession with Mars. 🚀

But, of course,— this is Elon Musk we're talking about. 😏

Although the Moon is currently in the spotlight, Musk was quick to clarify that Mars is very much still on the agenda.

On Monday, he posted on X that "SpaceX will build a system that allows anyone to travel to the Moon," before casually adding, "And Mars too."

So no, he's not abandoning Mars — he's… prioritizing. 🪐

And from a business and finance perspective, this actually makes a lot of sense. 🧠

A lunar city is faster, cheaper, and far more achievable in the near term than a fully self-sustaining settlement on Mars.

In fact, Musk himself admitted the Moon offers a quicker path to "securing the future of civilization," with something likely to be ready in less than ten years. (This is a dramatic difference when accounting the higher risk and longer runway of Mars.)

Plus, investors tend to like projects that deliver results before patience runs out. 😌

In addition, timing is a major factor here — especially with a potential SpaceX IPO coming soon.

SpaceX is reportedly targeting a public offering later this year that could raise up to $50 billion, potentially making it the largest IPO in history.

So, a concrete, near-term lunar roadmap with solid government contracts, commercial launches, and Starlink expansion — is infinitely easier to sell to public markets than a wild Martian dream.

Because vision alone, no matter how realistic, doesn't ring the bell on Wall Street. 🔔

Revenue-wise, SpaceX is already far less dependent on NASA than many assume.

Musk confirmed that NASA will account for less than 5% of SpaceX's revenue this year, with the vast majority coming from the commercial Starlink system. Add in lunar contracts through NASA's Artemis program, growing global demand for satellite internet, and potential space-based data centers powered by AI, and suddenly the Moon looks like a very profitable step. 💰

Long story short, Musk isn't taking abandoning his goals. Rather, he's doing what he's always done — smart business and good PR. AKA continuing to progress while keeping the reality real for the audience.

Mars remains the ultimate destination, and from the sounds of it, the Moon might just be the smartest way to pay for it. 💸

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