Elon Musk Reveals When SpaceX Will Reach Its Next Major Milestone On Thursday, Musk gave a formal presentation on the development of SpaceX's Starship.

By Chloe Arrojado

Bloomberg | Getty Images

On Thursday, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk gave a presentation on the design, development and testing of the company's Starship. This is the first time Musk has given a formal presentation on the space venture since September 2019.

During his update, Musk relayed confidence that the SpaceX Starship, designed for trips to the moon and Mars, will get to Earth's orbit for the first time in 2022.

"I feel at this point highly confident that we'll get to orbit this year," Musk said.

However, there are a few operational challenges for the Starship moving forward. Though he has a "rough estimate" that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will give SpaceX approval to try a launch to orbit from Boca Chica, Texas in March, Musk admitted SpaceX doesn't have much insight into where things stand with the government agency. He also touched on technical improvements, such as fixing issues with the Starship's chamber.

Related: Elon Musk's SpaceX Is Putting a 'Literal Dogecoin on the Literal Moon'

Musk also clued the audience in on potential business opportunities for the Starship, though he shied away from revealing any names.

"There's going to be some future announcements that I think people will be pretty fired up about," he said. "There are a lot of additional customers that will want to use Starship [but] I don't want to steal their thunder. They're going to make their own announcements."

You can watch Musk's full update here:

SpaceX also released an animation simulating how a crewed Starship would voyage to Mars, which can be watched here:

Related: SpaceX Will Make Elon Musk a Trillionaire, According to Predictions

Chloe Arrojado

Entrepreneur Staff

Editorial Assistant

Editor's Pick

Related Topics

Business Plans

She Wrote An 'Escape Plan' to Quit Her Job and Move to an Island. Now She's There Generating Nearly $300,000 A Year

"My detailed, step-by-step plan on how I would quit my job and move to a Caribbean island."

Business News

This AI Fitness Influencer Makes $11,000 a Month And Was Asked Out By a Celebrity

Aitana López has over 149,000 Instagram followers and brands love her. Is she the future of social media marketing?

Business News

'Traumatized': Man Jumps Out of Emergency Exit on Southwest Airlines Plane

The incident occurred late Sunday night in New Orleans.

Starting a Business

How Founder Personalities Contribute to Startup Success

A study found that founders who possess a mix of grit, curiosity, conscientiousness, and high emotional intelligence were more likely to propel their startups towards success.