SpaceX has spent two decades proving that hardware once considered too complex, too capital-intensive, or too dependent on entrenched suppliers could sometimes be pulled in-house. Its Q3 earnings call suggests the company now wants to test that philosophy on perhaps the hardest manufacturing problem of all: advanced semiconductor production.

The AI infrastructure race is increasingly becoming a contest over who can turn electrical capacity, cooling systems, and hardware into usable compute the fastest.

Racing Electric Instrument (REI), which built its business on defense and aerospace motors, is expanding into the commercial unmanned vehicle market, targeting power systems for drones and robots. REI chairman Chieh-tsun Lai said the company's experience in designing, manufacturing, and validating motors for highly demanding defense and aerospace applications gives it advantages over conventional industrial motor suppliers.

As Tesla showcases the new "flying" capability of its next-generation Roadster electric sports car, Vertical Aerospace, a key player in the flying-car sector, is facing regulatory delays and tightening operating funds. The UK electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) company says its Valo air taxi continues to hit development milestones, but liquidity constraints, a depressed share price and financing-related dilution are raising questions about whether it can secure certification by 2029.

What began as a satellite broadband service is increasingly becoming SpaceX's platform for connecting homes, aircraft, mobile devices, and government networks.

Vietnam has installed 10 Starlink satellite internet terminals on islands near Haiphong, highlighting how low Earth orbit networks are being used to extend connectivity beyond conventional infrastructure. The deployment provides backup communications for emergencies and could support digital development, while also illustrating the service's regulatory limits, cost challenges, and focus on remote users.

SpaceX's third quarter of 2026 reshaped the business. Its Super Intelligence (SI) segment, the compute and AI unit previously reported as Artificial Intelligence, generated more revenue than the Starlink-led Connectivity segment, reversing the previous quarter's order, and the group posted an operating profit after losses in each of the four preceding quarters. The quarter also showed what the shift costs: capital spending again ran ahead of revenue, and most of it went into compute.

SpaceX announced on October 8, 2026, that it would acquire US 800MHz low-band spectrum licenses held by Grain Management, covering up to 14MHz of paired bandwidth. The transaction remains subject to approval by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

US defense companies are increasingly setting up partnerships in Taiwan, moving beyond component procurement to joint development, system integration, local manufacturing, maintenance support, and joint production for the US and its allies. The shift is strengthening Taiwan's role in the defense supply chain while helping local companies build military manufacturing and sustainment capabilities.

The European Union is strengthening its response to cybersecurity risks posed by artificial intelligence, planning to use automated measures to accelerate incident response while testing Chinese open-weight AI models to assess the capabilities and limitations of different technologies.

As advances in aerospace technology lower the barriers to launching and building low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites, emerging satellite operators worldwide are driving demand for outsourced space solar cells and modules. Supply-chain sources say the trend is creating new opportunities for Taiwan's solar industry beyond SpaceX, which is led by Tesla CEO Elon Musk.